Shadow of Madness
by wanderer23432
Summary: A new Noah has appeared, Will the exorcists be able to defeat this new and powerful Noah?  Main Characters are OC, Road, Tyki, and eventually Allen
1. A chance meeting?

**This is my first story so please enjoy :D**

**Rated: T**

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own D. Gray-Man  
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It was a bright sunny day and Allen Walker was walking through the streets of Paris, France. It was a rare day off for the young exorcist and he was enjoying his day off. Allen entered a small cafe. He scanned busy café as if he was looking for someone.

"Hey Allen" called out a voice, Allen turned around and smiled.

"Hey Lenalee" Allen replied and walked over to her. "Where's Lavi?"

"Late, as usual" Lenalee replied with a somewhat irritated tone as Allen took a seat across from her.

"So any word from Komui about our next assignment"?

"No, brother hasn't said anything yet. But seriously Allen, you should be happy that we get a day off, but here you are wondering about work" Lenalee looked slightly disappointed at Allen.

"I'm sorry Lenalee, I guess I'm not used to not working" Allen said with a chuckle. He was about to place an order when suddenly a loud commotion occurred outside of the café. He turned around to see a group of 4 men surrounding a man on the ground. It was at that moment when Allen's cursed eye activated.

"Akuma" Allen shouted. As soon as he said it both Lenalee and Allen were out of the café with their innocence activated. One of the akuma happened to look behind him and noticed the two exorcists charging at them and transformed. As the crowd around them began to flee the other 3 akuma transformed. Allen using the crown clown was able to destroy 2 akuma in one swing, while Lenalee managed to destroy the remaining 2 with two kicks.

As the dust cleared Allen and Lenalee walked over to the cowering man on the ground.

"It's all right" Allen said reaching out to help the man up, "you're safe now."

The man looked around before grabbing his hand, making sure that there were no other monsters around. Allen and Lenalee were both surprised that the man looked the same age as them. He was about as tall as Lavi but looked the same age as Allen with almost shoulder length blond hair and blue eyes.

"Thank you so much" the now assumed boy said, "what were those things?"

"Those were akuma" Allen explained, "They are weapons created by the Millennium Earl to destroy humans. It is our jobs, as exorcists to destroy akuma and protect humans from the Earl". The boy stood there taking in everything Allen said, nodding in understanding every once in a while.

"Well I may not understand all of what you said but I sure am grateful for helping me" the boy said with a smile. "By the way, what are your names? I would like to know the names of those who saved me".

"My name in Lenalle Lee."

"My name is Allen Walker. If I may ask what is your name?"

"My name? Well it's Matthew or just Matt for short."

"Do you have a last name Matt" Lenalee asked in curiosity.

"Well no, not really" Matt looked down with a sad look on his face. "My parents abandoned me shortly after I was born so I grew up without a last name." He looked back up with a smile, "but it's alright because I've been able to live a great life by myself."

"I'm sorry to hear that Matt" said Allen, "I know what it feels like to be abandoned by your parents."

"Well why doesn't he come to the Order and become a finder, or maybe even an exorcist like us Allen?" Lenalee then turned to Matt, "would you like to come join the Black Order Matt? Maybe we can become your family."

Matt stood there almost shocked at what she just offered him. "It's tempting but you know I've lived by myself for almost 19 years now, and the life I have now isn't so bad-"

"Wait, how old are you" asked Allen.

Matt looked at Allen with a confused look, "I am 18 years old why do you ask?"

"No way, look no older than me and I'm only 15."

Matt laughed at the comment, "Yeah, I get that a lot; I just look young for my age that's all." Allen was slightly embarrassed but then remembered that he had interrupted Matt.

"Anyway what were you saying again?

"Oh ya, that's right" Matt now remembering what he was saying just a moment ago. "As of right now I am simply travelling Europe seeing what I can see, but who knows I may change my mind someday."

"Well if you ever do make sure to contact us" Lenalee said with a smile.

"I will" Matt said and shook both of their hands. They said their goodbyes and walked away.

"So do you think he'll join" Lenalee asked Allen.

"I hope so, it would be nice to have another friend at the order."

"Well anyway we need to find Lavi, I can't believe he stood us up like that."

"Alright lets go".

Matt looked back and saw that the 2 exorcists were gone and ducked into an alley. As he walked by a shadowy figure appeared next to him and began to walk with him.

"So did you meet him" asked the shadowy figure.

"Of course, and I have to admit you were right, he certainly is an interesting person."

"Told ya so" said the figure triumphantly.

"Hey when you're right, you're right."

"And I'm always right."

Matt laughed a little at the comment. "Yeah I suppose you're right Road." Just then a large grin came over Matt's face and his skin turned grey, his hair turned black and cross-shaped stigma formed across his forehead. The two then entered the heart shaped door waiting at the end of the alley. As the doors closed, it began to sink into the ground.

**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. Reviews are very much appreciated because this is a work in progress and though I have the next few chapters done I make constant adjustments. Chapter 2 coming soon!**


	2. The plan

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt and Road travelled through the dark hallway as they headed towards the ark, Matt still had a large grin on his face which caught Roads attention.

"Hey what are you so happy about?"

Matt looked at her, "Well I really can't wait to fight him, he looks strong."

Road gave Matt an angry look, "Don't you dare hurt my Allen!"

"Oh I wouldn't dream of it" Matt replied sarcastically. Road materialized a few candles and launched them at Matt who barely managed to dodge them. "Hey" Matt complained as he continued to dodge more and more candle, "I was just kidding around. I promise you that as long as he doesn't attack me, or Lord Millennium commands it, I will not attack Allen Walker, ok?"

Road stopped throwing candles when Matt said this. "Fine, I guess there's nothing you can do if either situation occurs." Road gave Matt a smile and caught up to where he was standing.

After a few more minutes, the 2 Noah reached the end of the long hallway. Matt opened the door and on the other side was a large, black room with paintings all over the walls. At the center of the room was a large, round table with 14 seats.

"Hey Road, what are we doing at the dining room?" It took Matt a moment to realize that all of the seats except 3 were filled. "Wait, did I miss something?" Road chuckled at how slow Matt was to realize there were others in the room.

"Matt you're so slow sometimes."

Matt was a little irritated by this, "Hey that's not true."

"Yeah it is, you're such a kid Matt."

"I'm not a kid!"

"Yes you are."

"Am not."

The argument continued only for a moment when a voice spoke up from behind them.

"Are you two just going to stand there and bicker like a bunch of children or will you come and sit down, we're waiting on you.

"Tyki" Road said joyfully as she skipped over to where he was sitting giving him a quick hug, then taking a seat next to him. Matt just stood there astonished, like always, at Tyki's ability to stop their arguments.

"Hey Tyki" Matt said, raising his hand. Matt walked over and took his seat that also happened to be next to Tyki. "So what's going on Lord Millennium? Why are we here?"

"Well I'm glad you asked Matthew" the Millennium Earl said in a pleasant tone, "starting today we will be moving forward in our plans to destroy the Black Order."

The Millennium Earl spoke to the group explaining his reasoning for this and began breaking up the Noah into groups. Eventually he got to Matt's group. "Matthew, you are with Tyki and Road, I want you to attack the Asian branch HQ, do you think you three can handle that?"

"I hope Allen will be there" Road gleefully said.

"Not a problem" said Tyki.

"When do we get started" asked Matt.

"Tomorrow" the Earl said answering Matt's question, "for now just rest up, everyone you are dismissed, good luck to all of you." With that the Noah began leaving the room leaving only Matt, Tyki, and Road.

"You realize Road that Walker will probably not be at the Asian Branch right" Matt asked. Road looked at Matt with a hopeful look in her eyes.

"Well a girl can hope right?"

"Except we just saw him in France it will take him quite some time to get there and we will be there tomorrow."

"Matt you suck, you're always so negative" Road made a pouted look. She knew that he was right but she wasn't going to admit that to him.

"So what do you two want to do" asked Tyki. He really didn't want to do anything but he knew if Road wanted to do something she would probably drag him and Matt along with her.

"Not really" Road stated, "I'm kinda tired so I'm gonna get some sleep, see you tomorrow." Road waved to both Tyki and Matt then summoned her door and left.

"Well I got nothing better to do" Matt said reluctantly, "was there something in particular you wanted to do?"

Tyki was confused; usually it was Matt who wanted to sleep and Road who wanted to do something. "Well no, I was just going to go outside and smoke if nobody wanted to do anything."

"Sounds good to me" Matt said in a plain tone, he really didn't seem to care.

"Alright then." The two left the room and was soon outside of the large building within the new ark. Tyki lit up a cigarette and began to inhale.

"Hey can you give me one" Matt asked, hand held out, waiting for Tyki to give him one.

Tyki exhaled, "Aren't you a little young to smoke?"

"Don't joke around, you know I'm old enough."

"Yeah, I know calm down" Tyki pulled out another cigarette, lit it and handed it over to Matt. Matt inhaled deeply and let out a stream of smoke as he exhaled, after he sat down and continued to smoke the cigarette. "So how are things going for you" Tyki asked trying to start a conversation.

"Fine I suppose" answered Matt, "Ever since I became a Noah, I haven't been able to leave the ark much. Today was a rare exception, as you know."

"Well you know why the Earl hasn't let you leave."

"Yeah" said Matt, "Because I'm not to be trusted" Matt said that last part with bitterness.

"It's not that we don't trust you Matt, it's just that you are like the 14th, you don't have thousands of years of memories like the 13 original Noah like Road and I. And if you remember from what we've told you the last time we had someone like you (the 14th) he ended up nearly killing the Earl. And of course there's you aspect of Noah that we wor-"

"I know, I know, we don't need to go into that" Matt interrupted. He inhaled the last of his cigarette and stood up. "Speaking of which I need to go meditate, I'll see you tomorrow Tyki." Matt headed for the door, before he entered the mansion he turned back to Tyki who was still smoking. "You know, this is the first mission that the Earl has given me. I'm excited for it, because I can finally prove to everyone that I am trustworthy, and that I belong in this family." With that Matt walked into the mansion closing the door behind him.

"I know boy" Tyki exhaled, "I hope this works out for you, and that you don't lose yourself in the process." Tyki looked at his cigarette noticing that he finished it he bagan to pull out a new one. "Either way tomorrow will prove to be very interesting. After all this is what I've been trainig you for" Tyki smiled, lit the cigarette and began to smoke it.

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Chapter 3 is being worked on and will be uploaded soon.**


	3. The calm before the storm

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

**And now back to the story…**

The night came and went and Matt spent the entire night meditating; he was well aware of what could happen if he were to lose control, and it was a risk he was not willing to take. It was around 8 in the morning when a knock came to his door.

"What is it" said Matt in an irritated tone.

"Lord Tyki Mikk and Mistress Road are waiting for you in the foyer master" it was obviously one of the akuma maids.

"Isn't it too early to begin the attack" Matt asked not bothering to even leave his meditation pose.

"It is 8 o'clock sir, Lord Mikk stated to me that you were supposed to me over an hour ago."

Matt's eyes shot open only now realizing that he was late. "Crap, tell them I was in meditation and will be down as soon as possible." Matt rushed to the bathroom to shower and prepare for the day. He did not hear a response from the maid so he assumed that she had left.

Tyki Mikk and Road were sitting around in the foyer. Tyki was reading a book and Road was playin with Lero, much to his dislike. Just then an akuma maid walked in, Tyki's gaze left the book. Noticing that the maid was alone he figured that Matt was not ready.

"I apologize" the maid began, "Lord Matthew said he was in med-"

"I figured as much" Tyki said interrupting the akuma. "Thank you that will be all." The maid bowed and left the room.

"I hope he doesn't take much longer" Road complained, "I'm getting kinda board."

"What? Lero isn't entertaining you anymore?" Tyki chuckled.

"No, I just wasn't to play the exorcist that's all."

"Be patient, I'm sure it will be only a few more minutes" Tyki reassured Road who went back to playing with Lero.

Around 15 minutes and Matt finally entered the foyer. He was wearing a black tuxedo with white gloves, and also wore a long black cloak over it. Tyki noticed Matt walk in first and gave him a smile.

"Well look who dressed up for the occasion."

"Hey you're wearing the same thing as me so quit complaining."

"I never said I was I was only pointing out a fact."

It was at this time that Road took notice to what was going on; she turned around to see what was going on.

"Hey Matt you look good and all but did you have to take so long?"

"Sorry Road, I slept in" lied Matt; there was no need to tell them that he was meditating. "So how long will it take to get to the Asian Branch?"

"It shouldn't take too long a few minutes at best" Tyki replied, "we will be using the ark's portals instead of Road's doors because she has never been there, once we finish up there we will most likely use the ark to leave but if for some reason that can't be done we will simply use Road's doors."

"So what are we doing there exactly" Matt asked, "Lord Millennium only mentioned that we were to attack the branch."

"We are collecting all the information we can regarding the Heart of Innocence" said Road, "You and me will distract any exorcists there while Tyki will search for the information. Once we find what we need we will leave. But that doesn't mean we can't have any fun before that happens right Tyki?" Road had a sadistic, yet innocent smile on her face.

"Of course Road." Tyki stood up leaving the book he was reading on the chair. "Now let's get going."

The three Noah walked throughout the ark until they reached a door with the number 62 above it. Tyki opened the door and allowed both Matt and Road to enter before entering himself. The passage way was long and dark, just like any other passageway. After a few minutes of silent walking they reached the end of the hallway.

"So Matt you ready to make your debut to the Black Order" asked Tyki.

"Of course I am" Matt replied with an evil grin on his face, "I've been ready ever since I became a Noah." Road laughed a little but it didn't bother Matt at all. Then they stepped out into the light of the Asian Branch.

**Thanks for reading! I'm putting chapter 4 up with this because I have finished them both (and because this chapter is kinda short in my opinion). Please review.**


	4. Debut performance

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own D. Gray-man**

The Asian Branch was in a panic, the day started off normal, until the ark opened a portal right on their front door. But that wasn't was caused the panic, because the branch was attacked once before by a single level 3 akuma, the branch had made preparations if such an attack were to happen again. No, what got them in a panic was when over the intercom was the announcement that 3 members of the clan of Noah appeared through the gate. While all the scientists were in a panic, Bak Chan was able to seal off the entrance, trapping the Noah in one room. At the same time Kanda, Noise Marie, and General Tiedoll made their way to where the Noah were being held.

"Well what a surprise they managed to delay us for a moment it seems" Tyki said sarcastically. "Hey Matt do you think you can break through?"

"I've been trying since the wall went up" Matt explained, "but this isn't regular stone, I don't know if I can."

"Come on Matt, you mean to tell me that on your first mission you're willing to give up after 5 minutes" Road teased.

"Hey, I don't see you doing anything to help" Matt shot back in frustration, "At least I'm trying." Matt thought about their situation for a moment then got an idea, "Hey Tyki can't you phase through the wall and just take us with you?"

"I could, but then you wouldn't learn anything about your powers."

Matt grumbled for a moment then let out a quick scream in frustration. "That's it I've lost my patience" he began to walk up to the wall.

"That didn't take long" Road whispered to Tyki who laughed a little at the comment.

"Yeah, but it's alright, just watch."

The two watched as Matt approach the wall and put a hand on it. He closed his eyes and began to concentrate. After a moment his eyes shot open, a rumble could be heard then suddenly the wall began collapsing on itself. On the other side of the wall, the exorcists were shocked to see the wall crumble.

"General get to safety" yelled Marie.

"I will not abandon my students" Tiedoll protested and took out his innocence.

"The Noah are probably after you and we cannot afford to lose another general seeing as we've lost General Yeegar, and General Cross has disappeared again" Kanda yelled, "Now go! We will be fine."

"Very well" said Tiedoll, "Just promise to return to me safely." With that Tiedoll fled to the ark portal that Allen Walker had made to connect the other branches.

As the dust began to settle Kanda and Marie noticed the shadows of the 3 Noah, Kanda instantly recognized Tyki and Road but the third Noah was a mystery to him.

"What's wrong Kanda" Marie asked.

"There's a new Noah that the Order hasn't seen yet, I'm wondering if this is the reincarnation of the Noah that I killed back on the ark."

"Then we need to be careful Kanda, we don't know what he is capable-"Marie was unable to finish his sentence, which caused Kanda to turn around to see a stone spike coming through the ground piercing Marie's chest. He turned back to see that the new Noah's arm extended.

"So this must be his ability" Kanda said to himself. He then overheard what seemed like arguing.

"Awww Matt you killed him too quickly, now there's only one exorcist to play with" Road punched Matt in the shoulder of his extended arm.

"Ow! Road will you relax, the wound I gave him won't kill him it missed his heart so you should still be able to play with him."

"Yay" Road jumped in the air.

"Hey Tyki get going already, this won't take long."

"Fine, fine" shrugged Tyki as he walked off.

"You're not going anywhere Noah" yelled Kanda as he charged towards Tyki. Without warning a stone slab raised from the ground causing Kanda to run into it. Road began to laugh at the exorcist, Matt joined in the laughter after a moment. Kanda rose to his feet and lunged at Matt. "You'll regret that you damn Noah."

Matt stopped laughing, and then easily dodged Kanda's attack, "I doubt that exorcist". Matt raised his arms and more spikes began to shot from the ground. Kanda either cut through the spikes or dodged them,

"First illusion: Hell's insects." Kanda swung his sword and creatures shot forward towards Matt who rose a giant stone slab from the ground to protect himself. The creatures easily destroyed the slab and continued towards Matt, who barely managed to dodge the attack.

The dust settled down and Kanda was unable to be found.

"Wait where did he go" Matt said as he frantically looked around.

"Behind you" Road yelled out. Matt began to turn around only to see Kanda thrusting his sword at him.

_Crap, _Matt thought to himself, _not enough time to block it_. As he thought this he felt the blade pierce through his chest. Blood began to flow from the wound.

"You're pretty fast Noah" said Kanda. Matt had managed to deflect the sword with his hand pushing the blade into the center of his chest instead of his heart. "That was supposed to be a fatal blow."

Matt coughed up a little blood before speaking, "Doubt it" the sarcastic tone in his voice was also shown with a grin. "Did you honestly that would be enough to kill me?"

"You're still human, if I stabbed you in the heart, you would have died."

Matt laughed a little, "Is that so? Well then it's a good thing I redirected that attack of yours." Suddenly Matt felt his mind go. Matt began to laugh hysterically. Kanda, not understanding what was going on quickly pulled his sword from Matt's body and took a few steps back. A dark aura was pouring out of the wound as Matt continued to laugh. Suddenly Matt stopped laughing and replaced it with a sadistic smile. The aura that was once pouring out of his wound began to encircle him. Almost immediately Road was by his side.

_Crap, he's losing it_, thought Road, _Tyki hurry up we need to leave Matt is losing control._

_Almost done, give me a second.  
>We don't have that much time we need to go NOW!<em>

_Right, I'm on my way._

Kanda was about to strike but massive stone spikes erupted from the ground and continued to rise, piercing the high ceiling. Tyki arrived moments later.

_Wow, he really has lost it; the aura around him is proof enough. If we don't get him out I don't think Road and I will be able to stop him_. Tyki rushed over to Road and Matt.

"Here give him to me I'll carry him out" Tyki stated, even though he was already in the process of doing so. "What the hell happened Road? He seemed fine just a little while ago."

"He got stabbed by the exorcist's innocence; I think it was enough for Matt to lose it."

"Man, he certainly can be a handful at times can't he? Regardless, I got what we came for it's time to go anyways." The 2 standing Noah rushed to the portal and entered it. The gate immediately closed after them.

Kanda walked over to Marie who was lying on the ground and checked for a pulse.

Kanda let out a sigh, "Good he's still alive." He then began to half drag, half carry Marie to the medical wing. _I wonder what that was all about_, Kanda thought to himself, but immediately ignored his own thought. He needed to get Marie immediate medical attention, and he also needed to report the new Noah to the Order.

**Well that was chapter 4, I hope you liked it. This was the first time I have written a fight scene so I hope to improve in upcoming battles. Please review, chapter 5 is being edited and will be up very soon.**


	5. Aftermath

Tyki laid Matt down on a couch in the mansion back on the ark. Matt's wound had healed and the aura that was coming out had stopped as well, he asleep by the time they had reached the ark.

"That was too close" Tyki stated after taking a seat next to the couch, "how could 1 injury drive him to that point?"

"Probably because it was his first time actually dealing with innocence, we should have realized that before now" road was sitting next to Matt letting his head rest on her lap. Suddenly a door opened at the other end of the room and Sheril Kamelot came rushing into the room.

"Road my daughter are you all right? I heard you were-"Sheril cut himself off as he saw Matt on the couch. "He lost control didn't he?"

"Almost, if we waited around any longer he may have" Tyki explained as Sheril approached Matt and Road.

"To be so young, and yet forced to bear such a heavy burden" Sheril said with a sad tone of voice.

"His aspect is like Raasura, it puts a lot of strain on the person who has those memories" Road explained in agreement. "Luckily for Matt, I believe he'll be able to control his abilities more and more as time goes on."

"He'll have to avoid getting injured by innocence though" Tyki added, "who knows if he will ever be able to control himself when injured." There was a small silence then Sheril spoke up.

"Wait, won't that be difficult after all his main ability is close range combat?"

"That's true but you forget that Matt has two abilities; one meant for close range, the other for long range" Tyki corrected.

"Oh yes that is right I had forgotten about that."

"Hey dad" said Road, Sheril looked at his daughter, "why did you think I was hurt?"

"Oh, that" Sheril said embarrassed, "I was told by the twins that you had returned injured."

"And you believed them" Road sounded a little irritated, "Dad they weren't there and we only just got back how on earth do you think they would know that?"

Sheril thought about it for a moment then lowered his head in shame, "You have a point there." He raised his head and began crying, "But I had to react that way, Road, if you were hurt I wouldn't know what to do with myself." Sheril would've continued but a chunk of the floor came up and struck him in the chin, knocking him back.

"Do you mind keeping it down" Matt said as he slowly sat up. He lifted his hand that was just touching the ground and began scratching his head. "Honestly how is a guy supposed to get any sleep when you are acting like such a child."

"Oh you're awake" Road was surprised that he awoke so quickly, she would've said more but she was laughing to much at her father who was still on the ground.

"How are you feeling" asked Tyki, finishing what Road was trying to say.

"Well my head hurts and I don't remember much of what happended. Speaking of which, what happened?"

"You want the long story or short story? I can give you the short story but Road can give you the long version seeing as she was actually there."

Matt turned around to see Road now kneeling on the ground, still laughing, poking Sheril in the face with Lero. He then turned back to Tyki. "The short version please, I think Road is a bit occupied."

"Ok, short version you got hurt and nearly lost it."

"How bad was the injury?"

"Stabbed through the chest, don't know how it happened though."

"Thanks for telling me" Matt was now sitting up completely and was watching Road tease her father.

"Speaking of being stabbed, why did you let that happen? You have the best defensive abilities out of all the Noah" Sheril added.

"You know I'm not good at using that ability at the moment, I don't have enough control yet. As for how it happened, I'm not sure, I think I lost track of him."

"You need more training, I guess" Tyki stated standing up.

"Going somewhere Tyki" asked Road.

"Just stepping out for a bit, Road, then I'm going to report to the Earl." Tyki began to walk away but then turned around. "Hey Road can you do me a favor?"

"What is it Tyki" asked Road tilting her head in curiosity.

"Can you help Matt with his training? I would do it myself, but I will be busy helping the Earl look over all the information we recovered."

Road leapt to her feet in excitement, "Sure thing!" She then grabbed Lero, then grabbeed Matt by the arm and began to forcibly dragging Matt across the floor.

"Wait hold on Road" Matt was panicking a little; he did not want to train with her again. "Can't we get someone else? Anyone will do." He directed that at Tyki, who only laughed at Matt.

"No can do, Matt everyone is too busy, and besides, I thought you liked training with Road."

"When have I ever said that? I hate training with her. I always end up getting hurt!"

"Oh, that's right" Tyki paused, "looks like you're out of luck then."

"Noooo" screamed Matt as he was finally dragged out of the room.

"You know I would have been more than happy to help him" said Sheril.

"I know, but I think Road will have a stronger affect then you right now" Tyki grinned.

"Well you have been in charge of his training for the past 2 years, so I suppose you would know what's best for him" shrugged Sheril as he left the room with Tyki.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 6 is being edited and will be coming out later today (I have up to chapter 9 done, but I do need to edit them a bit).**


	6. Unwilling training Road vs Matt

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

"Come on Road do we really need to do this now" Matt pleaded to Road as she dragged him into the large training area. The training room was a large circular room with a high ceiling. The floor was dirt because the tiles would always get destroyed, so it stopped being repaired.

"Of course, I told Tyki I would" Road said with an evil grin. She then pushed Matt up who stumbled to get his footing.

"Yeah, but he didn't say to do it now, I haven't had the best day you know. Can't I just rest a little?" Matt turned around just to see several of Road's candles fly by him. One of them managed to scratch his cheek. Matt's face then suddenly became serious. "I take that as a no."

"Yep" Road said with a smile, then summoned several more candles and began launching them at her unwilling opponent. Matt simply raised his hand and a stone slab appeared from the ground blocking most of the candles; the rest missed Matt completely. From that slab several spikes began to form, and with a wave of his hand, began to launch at Road who easily dodged them. Just as she got her footing a massive spike began to emerge from under Road's feet. Road then used Lero to fly into the air. Road watched as the spike continued to rise until it reached the height Road was at. Without warning, a new spike branched out of the larger spike aimed directly at Road. Although it caught Road off guard she still managed to dodge it. As she did, yet another spike formed from the new spike and shot straight at Road. Road not expecting a third branch was almost knocked off Lero, but still managed to dodge.

"Hey when did you learn to do that" asked Road as she materialized new candles.

"Not too long ago actually" Matt Replied, as the spikes sink back into the ground. As the new candles were launched Matt simply created a platform, which rose into the air. "It's been a while since I've let you fight me so it makes sense that you wouldn't know about that."

"Hey Matt can you form weapons yet?"

"Yeah, but I can't control them very well so I don't use that ability."

"Well you might want to use it now" Road pointed behind Matt who turned around to see several candles closing in on him.

"When did you?" Matt cut himself off and focused on the candles. Matt swiped at the candles in rapid succession, cutting all of the candles that could have hit him in half. As he stopped Road could see that Matt had turned his arms into blades.

"Looks like you can control it just fine" Road pointed out.

"No, look" Matt showed Road his arms as the blades began to crumble away.

"Wait, hold on, they are made of stone? I thought your body just did that."

"No, the blades are stone that I formed around my arms and shaped into swords." The swords finished crumbling revealing his arms. "The problem is that I can't seem to control it for very long and keep the blades effective, so whenever I try, they usually crumble away after a few seconds."

"Oh I see. Well I guess we can call it quits for now."

"Thank you" Matt said in relief, and began to lower the pillar he was standing on. Suddenly a candle flew into his foot. Matt let out a yelp of pain. "Oh come on I thought we were done!"

"We are, I just wanted to get a hit off on you" Road laughed. Matt laughed sarcastically as he pulled out the candle and tossed it back at Road, which disappeared before it even reached her. As Matt was limping out of the room Road called out to him, "Hey Matt can we do this again sometime?" Matt simply gave her a thumb up and left the room.

"Well that was more fun than I thought" Road said to herself.

"Does that mean you'll let me go-Lero" Lero asked with hope.

"Not a chance" Road said smugly as she touched the ground and began to twirl Lero and laugh childishly.

Meanwhile, Noise Marie had his wounds treated quickly, and was transferred to HQ to rest. Tiedoll was with Kanda just outside of the room Marie was resting in.

"So there's a new Noah" said Tiedoll.

"Correct, though he seemed pretty weak to me" said Kanda turning his head away from Tiedoll.

"Is something bothering you Kanda" Tiedoll asked.

"It's nothing that concerns you old man."

"Perhaps, but you should tell me anyways."

Kanda sighed, "It's just that when I was fighting the Noah, there were two things that I found strange."

"Oh?" Tiedoll sounded very interested, "and what were they?"

"Well first, when I managed to stab him, even though I put all my strength into it, Mugen was barely able to pierce his chest, like he was wearing some kind of armor."

"Was he?"

"That's a stupid question, but no he wasn't."

"And the second thing?"

"Will you be patient old man I'm getting there" yelled Kanda. "The second thing that bothered me was when I was able to stab him a strange aura came out of the wound and began to surround him, but before anything could happen the other Noah were there and took him away. But I could feel the strength of that aura, it was crushing the very air in the room.

"Well that is very interesting. By the way you didn't mention what his ability was."

"It appears to be earth manipulation; he was able to manipulate the ground to create stone pillars and spikes. If you ask me the ability seems pretty limited."

"I'll make sure that Komui about the new Noah, you just get some rest and prepare for your next mission.

"Yes sir." Said Kanda, and the two parted ways.

When Tiedoll arrived at Komui's office, he immediately began retelling Kanda's story of the Noah attack on the Asian Branch.

"Well at least we didn't lose anyone" Komui stated in a serious tone. "But what is important is the fact that a new Noah has appeared."

"I agree, but apart from what Kanda told me, we don't know anything about the Noah" said Tiedoll.

"Well there's a good possibility that this Noah is the reincarnation of the Noah Kanda defeated back in Edo."

"It isn't" an old voice said from behind Tiedoll, they both looked at the entrance of the office to see Bookman and Lavi standing there.

"Then who is it? From our reports, there are a total of 12 Noah not including the newest Noah" said Kumui.

"Hey gramps, do you think it could be that new apostle that we've heard about" asked Lavi.

"What do mean new apostle" asked Komui now more interested than ever.

"Well I've heard rumors of a 15th apostle of the clan of Noah, similar to that of the 14th, someone has somehow activated the Noah gene within them and has become a member of the Clan of Noah. The Millennium Earl has been keeping him a secret for at least 2 years now, but there have been rumors of this Noah appearing in the public from time to time."

"How much of a threat is he" asked Tiedoll.

"Well seeing as how the Millennium Earl has kept him hidden for the past 2 years, I would say he is a great threat."

"So what you're saying is that he needs to be eliminated as soon as possible."

"All I'm saying is that the Earl wouldn't have gone through all of that effort if he wasn't important."

**Thanks for ready, please review. I really enjoyed this chapter mainly because of the little Rad vs. Matt training. Chapter 7 is being edited, while chapter 8 is nearly done, so expect frequent updates over the next few days.**


	7. Another chance meeting?

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

A few weeks had passed since the assault on the Asian Brach and Matt had spent nearly everyday training with various members of the Noah family. One day, Tyki was reading a book when he heard a massive explosion. Tyki brushed it off as the twins causing a racket, but then more and more explosions were heard and Tyki decided to investigate. He followed the sound back to the training room where he heard yet another explosion.

"So this is where all of the noise is coming from" Tyki said to himself. He was about to open the door when the door opened and smoke poured out from the room. As the smoke cleared Tyki could see Matt emerging from the room coughing. "Hey Matt what on earth is going on in there?"

"Sorry, I asked the twins if they could help me out with my training and they may have gotten carried away.

_So it was the twins_, Tyki thought. "Are you all right?"

"Well I did manage to get hit by a few of the twins' red bombs, but other than that I'm fine." Said Matt; his cloths were a few scorch marks on them, but Tyki could tell that Matt was in pain. Matt stumbled a bit but Tyki managed to stop him before he could fall.

"You don't look fine" Tyki said pointing out the obvious. "Hey what happened to the twins?"

"Uhm, they may have accidentally been knocked unconscious so that they would stop shooting at me" there was a hint of sarcasm when Matt said 'accidentally'.

"Well take the rest of the day off, go somewhere, have some fun, you could use some time off."

"Wait what's the catch?" Matt was extremely suspicious.

"Why does there have to be a catch" Tyki gave Matt a little smile, trying to reassure him.

"Because you never tell me to take the day off."

"Well there can be a first time for everyth-"

"No, not with you" Matt was convinced something was up.

"Well…" Tyki hesitated.

"I knew it! There is a catch!"

"No catch, Road just wanted me to go with her to London, and since I don't like London, I may have told Road that you would rather go…"

"Oh come on! Why are you always getting me involved with her! You know just as well as I do that I don't like-"

"What" Road asked walking down the hallway.

"R-Road" Matt said in fear, "I-I was talking about London, I don't like London."

"But you've never been" Tyki said with an evil grin; he was throwing Matt to the wolves. "How can you not like someplace if you've never been?"

"Tyki you jerk" Matt said under his breath, but before he could say anything else Road grabbed his arm.

"Come on Matt let's get going, bye Tyki." Road waved to Tyki who waved back. As the Road and Matt left Jasdero and David exited the training room.

Hey, why are you always making Matt go with Road" David asked.

"Yeah, why" Jasdero added.

"I have my reasons" Tyki said as he too began to walk away. "Oh by the way, clean up the training room will ya?"

David and Jasdero threw a small tantrum but nonetheless reentered the training room.

"Road, do I really need to be here" asked Matt as they arrived in London.

"Yes, and besides I barely ever see you in your human form" Road pointed out. Matt looked at his arms, she was right, seeing his skin color as white instead of gray was strange even though it was his skin color.

"So what do you want to do" asked Matt.

"Come with me" said Road. Road led Matt throughout the city, going from shop to shop. After a few hours Matt's stomach began to growl which made Road giggle. "I guess we should stop and eat."

"That would be great" Matt said with a smile. The two picked out a restaurant and were given a booth seat. After placing their orders Road remembered something.

"Hey Matt I'll be right back I promised Lord Millennium I would bring back a souvenir."

"Don't take too long" Matt said and Road left. A few minutes went by, and Road hadn't returned, while Matt wondered what was taking so long, it didn't bother him at all. Then he heard some familiar voices coming from the booth behind him. Matt turned to see who the voices belonged to. Matt's eyes widened when he saw who they were. Allen, Lenalee, and a third, unfamiliar person were sitting having dinner. Matt ducked back into his booth.

_Well I wasn't expecting them to be here_, Matt thought. Hoping Road wouldn't return for few more minutes Matt took a deep breath then stood up and walked over to the booth they were sitting at.

"Well what are the odds of running into you 2 here" Matt said with a smile. The 3 sitting there looked up and Allen and Lenalee smiled, recognizing the person talking to them.

"Hey Matt how's it going? It has been a while hasn't it" Allen said with a smile.

"It's going well, who are you two with?"

"Hi my name is Lavi" the third person said before either Allen or Lenalee could answer.

"Oh hello Lavi" said Matt shaking Lavi's hand, "I met Allen and Lenalee when they saved me from akuma in Paris."

"Really? Allen why didn't you tell me."

"It never crossed my mind, sorry."

"Its fine well it was great to meet you Matt of friend of Allen and Lenalee is a friend of mine" Lavi said with a smile. Matt returned the smile, but the smile soon went away when he saw Road walking into the restaurant with a bag in her hand.

_Crap this is bad, I'm sure they'll recognize her immediately._ Matt began to subtly wave his hand at Road trying to tell her to go, but she didn't notice.

"Hey Matt is everything alright" Lenalee asked after seeing the look on Matt's face. Matt gave her s sweet smile.

"Of course, everything's fine" Matt noticed that Road was still heading towards him._ I need a distraction, now! _Matt lightly stomped the back of his right foot which caused the ground to shake violently.

"What's going on an earthquake" Lenalee said in a panic. During that time Matt managed to make eye contact with Road, who immediately understood what he wanted. Road then twirled around and left the restaurant. The ground finally stopped shaking much to the relief of everyone in the room.

"Well that was scary" Matt said standing fully up, with a look of relief in his eyes.

"Yeah, England doesn't get many so I was nervous that the building would collapse" Allen pointed out.

"Well that wouldn't have been good" Matt laughed, "Actually I just remembered, I have to meet someone in a little bit and I'd rather not be late."

"What's the matter Matt? Meeting a girl" Lavi asked with a laugh.

"No, no, nothing like that. I'm actually meeting an owner of a store in the city, he may be able to give me a job so I need to get going." Matt began to leave, "It was nice seeing you again Allen and Lenalee, and it was also very nice to meet you Lavi."

"Bye Matt, I hope our paths will cross again" Allen said with a smile.

"Oh I'm sure they will Allen" Matt said with an innocent smile, then left the restaurant.

Outside, Road was leaning against the building they were both just in, she looked over to see Matt leave the building. She then stood up straight and walked over to him.

"Hey why did you want me to leave so badly" asked Road as they began to walk.

"Well I was having a nice conversation with Allen Walker" said Matt, Road's eyes widened.

"And you didn't let me see him? Matt you're mean" pouted Road.

"Hey, they don't know I'm a Noah, and for now, I would like it to remain that way."

"Wait, they? Who was with him?"

"Lenalee and some guy named Lavi"

"Oh I enjoyed playing with all of them" Road said with a smile, Matt shuttered at the thought; he could only imagine what the term 'playing' meant for her enemies.

"I'm sure you did" Matt laughed a little, "So what did you get the Earl?"

"I got him a snow globe" Road pulled out the little globe to show Matt who looked a little confused about the gift. "He likes these kinds of things" Road pointed out.

"I see. I'll have to remember that next time I travel somewhere."

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter. As always reviews are appreciated. Chapter 8 coming soon (and by soon I probably mean either today or tomorrow).**


	8. Matt vs the Black Order

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt and Road had just arrived back from their trip. Waiting for them however was an akuma maid.

"Welcome back Lord Matthew, Mistress Road." Matt and Road both nodded acknowledging the akuma.

"Is there something you need" Road asked.

"Yes, Lord Millennium has requested an audience with Lord Matthew; he is expecting you in the dining hall.

"Great, and here I was hoping to get a little bit more time off before having an assignment" Matt grumbled and began to walk off. However before he could get too far, Road stopped him. "What is it Road? You know I can't keep the Earl waiting."

"Can you give him this?" Road held out the bag with the snow globe in it.

"Sure why not" Matt took the bag and waved goodbye.

Matt entered the dining hall and just like the maid said there sitting at the table was the Millennium Earl. Matt walked up and bowed a little.

"What is Lord Millennium, why have you summoned me?"

"Well I have a new assignment for you" said the Earl. "As you may have heard, I had Lulubell attack the exorcist HQ earlier this week."

"I believe Tyki mentioned it once, I was wondering why she was in such a foul mood recently."

"Yes well, she was sent there to recover the Egg which was taken from us when we left the old ark. It was unfortunately destroyed by the exorcists before we could successfully recover it."

"I see, and where exactly do I fall into this?"

"Straight to the point I see. Well, the attack has forced them to abandon their HQ, and they are actually leaving tomorrow. I want you to send them a message."

"And that message would be?"

"That they are on borrowed time, that I could have them destroyed at any time I choose."

"You meant to tell me that Lulubell's attack wasn't enough?"

"Oh I'm sure for some it was, but I want to make sure that every last one of them understands."

"It will be done, my lord. If there is nothing else then I shall begin to prepare."

"That is all, you may leave."

As Matt left the room he remembered the souvenir that Road had bought. "Oh I almost forgot here" Matt placed the bag on the table and slid it over to the Earl.

"What is this" asked the Earl as he looked into the bag.

"A souvenir from London, courtesy of Road."

"Aww, how sweet of her I must thank her sometime."

"Well I'm off Lord Millennium" Matt began to leave the room.

"Good luck my child."

Dawn broke over the Exorcist HQ; it was finally time for everyone to leave for the new HQ. Because of the recent attack, many exorcists returned to HQ in order to retrieve personal belongings as well as protect the finders and scientists as they travelled to their new HQ. Among those who were there were Allen, Lenalee, Lavi, and Kanda. No one noticed an ark gate open upon the nearby cliff. Matt, wearing similar clothing as his first mission (except without the cloak) sat on the edge of the cliff watching the members of the Black Order.

"This really sucks" Lavi complained as he walked alongside his friends.

"I agree" said Allen, "I finally had a home after Mana, and now I'm forced to leave."

"But you still have us Allen, and we're only going somewhere new, you'll still have a home" Lenalee said with a smile.

"That's true, I guess it isn't that bad" agreed Allen. Atop the cliff Matt finally stood up.

"Well I guess it's time for me to get this party started" Matt said raising his right arm. The ground began to shake.

"What the-an earthquake" a finder said to himself.

"No, this is no earthquake" said Kanda, remembering the last time this happened to him, "Everyone be on alert, a Noah is nearby!" A panic broke out looking for the Noah. Some began to flee the area; however, massive stone spikes broke out of the ground cutting everyone off.

"A Noah" Allen questioned, "No Noah has this ability."

"You're wrong beansprout, I recently fought a Noah with this ability."

"Then where is it coming from, there's no Noah in sight."

Lavi caught a glimpse of a small figure on top of the cliffs. "There he is" Lavi pointed to the cliff. Everyone looked up to see the Noah looming over them.

Matt, noticing that they had discovered began to walk straight down the cliff, using stone around his feet to keep him balanced. Eventually Matt got low enough for everyone to see him clearly, so he created a platform to stand on.

"Well hello, everyone" Matt said in a booming voice, "The Millennium Earl sends his regards. I have come to give you all a message." With that Matt raised both his arms and the ground began to shake even more violently then before. There was a large series of cracking noises coming from the cliff that their HQ was settled. Everyone looked in horror as the mountain itself began to collapse. The old HQ atop the mountain began to sway, the lowest floor gave way and the entire building began to fall over the cliff. After what felt like an eternity to those watching the HQ finally crashed into the ground leaving nothing but ruins under a giant cloud of smoke. Eventually all they could hear was the Noah's laughs.

"You know, I didn't think I was going to enjoy that as much as I did" Matt said to himself, but he did intentionally say it loud enough for everyone below him to hear.

"Lavi get me up there" Kanda yelled.

"Sure thing, big hammer, little hammer, extend!" Kanda grabbed on to the hammer as it extended upwards. They reached where Matt was and Kanda lunged at Matt who just stood there with an evil grin on his face. Lavi looked at the Noah; he saw something familiar about the Noah, even though he had never seen this Noah.

Matt stood there as Kanda stabbed him, not even trying to dodge. Kanda looked in shock to see that his blade never even cut him but instead was being held in place by stone.

"So that's how you did it" Kanda said to the Noah.

"Do what" asked Matt who looked at the sword, "Oh, that. The last time you stabbed me you got lucky and I wasn't prepared and the stone surrounding my body like armor absorbed most of the blow. This time I was ready, your weak attacks will never reach my skin." Kanda attempted to pull his sword out but found it to be stuck. The stone began to engulf Kanda's sword, then spikes began to extend out aiming for Kanda's chest. Kanda was forced to let go of Mugen and jump back. Matt went to grab the sword when a claw broke the sword off. Matt looked to see Allen attacking him with his Crown Clown.

"It's getting crowded on this little platform, shall we go to a better location" asked Matt as the platform raised itself to the top of the cliff. As it raised Allen thought he recognized the voice. Once at the top Matt jumped back a distance. "Allen Walker, I've been waiting to fight you for quite some time, ever since I first met you. Oh by the way, Road says hi."

Allen was confused, "What are you talking about Noah, I've never met you before." Matt gave him an evil grin.

"Of course we have, we've met twice now." Matt's skin color began to change to white. "Once in Paris and the other in London. Don't you remember? You and Lenalee saved me from those horrible akuma." Matt now gave Allen a sincere smile as his skin finally changed. Allen, Lavi, and Lenalee (who just reached the top) looked in horror at the person they were looking at.

"No, you can't be" Lenalee said in horror, "I thought you were our friend Matt!"

"Well if the situation was different" Matt transformed back to his Noah form, "that probably could've happened. But that is not the case unfortunately, I would've liked to run into you some more before you found out, but it was not to be." At the same time Kanda had retrieved Mugen and was using this little distraction to get behind him. Kanda then lunged at Matt. But even before he could reach him a stone hand grabbed Kanda's arm stopping him in his tracks. Matt began to step backwards.

"You really are a stubborn one. I told you that those attacks wouldn't work on me!" Matt quickly turned around, turned his right arm into a sword and stabbed Kanda straight through the heart. Lenalee screamed, Allen and Lavi charged at Matt. Matt used the stone hand to throw Kanda at the two attacking exorcists. Without thinking Lavi and Allen dodged out of the way, however Lenalee managed to catch him.

"Level 2 fire seal" yelled Lavi as he slammed his hammer on the ground causing a massive ring of fire to expand from his hammer. Matt simply grinned and a wall of stone encased him as the fire passed him. The stone then crumbled away revealing that Matt was untouched. "Oh come on that's just not fair" Lavi then took a swing at Matt who easily dodged.

Allen took a swing at Matt using his left arm as a sword. Matt managed to dodge and send several spikes shooting out of the ground aimed for Allen. Allen then used his sword to block all the spikes. Suddenly Lenalee appeared behind Matt and managed to land a massive kick to Matt's back sending him flying forward only to be hit by Lavi's hammer. Matt's body skipped across the ground before coming to a stop. Matt slowly stood up, a look of pure hatred in his eyes. They saw the stone that served as Matt's armor crumble away at certain parts. Even though the stone managed to absorb most of the impacts Matt was still injured. Matt wrapped his arm around his chest; he had a few broken ribs.

"Damn it, we barely did anything to him" Allen said in anger.

"It doesn't look like he walked away from that unharmed though" Lavi pointed out.

"Lenalee, do you think you can get behind him again" Allen asked.

"I can try" Lenalee said and took off.

Matt seeing Lenalee charge at him attempted to raise several stone spikes in order to stop her, but she was too fast. Lenalee kicked Matt in the jaw sending him flying into the air. She jumped up after him kicking him several times before she made one last kick to his stomach, which sent Matt hurdling to the ground. There was a massive impact, leaving a large crater. As the dust settled the 3 standing exorcists regrouped.

"Good job Lenalee" said Allen.

"Seriously, you crushed him, he didn't stand a chance" agreed Lavi. Allen looked over to see Kanda standing.

"Hey Kanda how are you feeling" asked Allen.

"Shut up beansprout this fight isn't over yet."

"What are you talking about" Lavi said with a laugh, "you saw the damage we did, there's no chance he-"Lavi was interrupted by the ground shaking. Massive spiked pillars began to emerge randomly across the field of battle. Everyone looked to the crater to see Matt standing and slowly walking out of the crater.

"You'll pay for that, you'll all pay you damn exorcists" yelled Matt. But before he could continue speaking, an ark gate opened and Tyki Mikk appeared from inside. Tyki took a moment to observe the damage done. He was impressed a little to see that so much damage was done in the amount of time Matt had.

"Sorry to disturb your little fight Matt, but the Earl says you need to return."

"Wait why? I'm gonna beat them!"

"I'm sure you would but unfortunately now isn't the time."

"Just 5 more minutes" Matt pleaded.

"Fine, but only 5."

"Well exorcists it looks like my time here is almost up so why don't we finish things now" Matt smiled and turned back to the exorcists and closed his eyes. Matt took a deep breath and opened his eyes. The exorcists noticed something different about Matt now. His left eye had changed, his eye color had changed from gold to blood red, and the white of his eye turned black.

"I hope you're ready for this exorcists, because this will all be over soon." With that Matt's body seemed to turn to smoke and disappear.

"Impossible, where did he go" Lenalee said, franticly looking around for the Noah. Suddenly Matt appeared behind Allen; he formed a sword with his hand and stabbed Allen's back.

"Allen no" yelled Lavi who immediately went to defend his now injured friend. Matt simply looked at Lavi, grinned, and vanished. Lavi looked everywhere for Matt. "Why can't we see him" there was a hint of panic in his eye. Lavi then saw Matt standing right in front of him, but it was too late to attack or dodge the Noah who slashed Lavi across the chest before disappearing again.

"Impossible" Lavi managed to mutter before collapsing to the ground. The same happened for Kanda who was cut twice, forming and 'x' shape across his back.

Lenalee was now the only one standing, her friends laid scattered across the field, bleeding. She wanted to cry but knew she had to focus.

"And now, it's your turn" Matt said from behind her. She began to brace herself for the inevitable attack but noticed that Matt was no longer moving, and that his left eye was badly bleeding. He fell to his knees in pain. Lenalee took the opportunity to land a clean kicked to Matt's head, sending him flying towards Tyki, who easily caught him.

"Well Matt, your 5 minutes are up" Tyki said sarcastically.

"Shut up" said Matt with his hand held over his left eye. "Hey do you mind giving me a hand I think I'm gonna-" before he could finished Matt collapsed to the ground, the impact of Lenalee's kick was finally setting in. Tyki picked Matt up and Tyki tipped his hat to the girl.

"Until next time." Tyki then stepped into the gate, which vanished after him. Soon, other exorcists began arriving. Lenalee collapsed to her knees and began to cry for her friends. The exorcists that arrived began to attend to the wounded.

Meanwhile, Tyki brought Matt to his room and laid him on his bed. Matt became conscious the moment they entered the ark but was unable to walk.

"Looks like you overdid it Matt" Tyki said after putting him on the bed.

"Just a bit I think" said Matt closing his eyes.

"I'll have one of the maids tend to your wounds" Tyki said leaving the room.

"Please do" Matt said with an upset tone. Matt then shut his eyes and fell asleep.

**Well I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. AS always please review. I've decided to upload maybe 1 or 2 chapters a day. Also, I feel I should mention that I have officially starting working on my prequel story: Birth of Madness, it should be out later this week. Chapter 9 coming soon**


	9. Bad news

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt awoke from his sleep to see an akuma maid over him with a bandage in her hand. For some reason however he couldn't see out of his left eye.

"What's going on" groaned Matt as he began to lean up. A sharp pain in his ribs stopped him though. "Ow! Son of-"

"Forgive me master" said the akuma bowing her head, "I must have done something wrong."

Matt stared at the akuma for a minute a bit confused. "No, no you didn't do anything, my ribs are just hurting, and my head is killing me."

"I'm not surprised, you have several cracked ribs and a massive concussion" said the akuma. "Not to mention the extensive damage done to your left eye." Matt placed his hand on his eye and felt the bandage that was over it. Matt finally sat up out of the bed despite the pain.

"What time is it" Matt asked as he began to get off the bed.

"7:30 master, breakfast is about to be served if you are interested."

"Well I am interested" Matt said sarcastically. He put on some pants and grabbed a coat, he felt that he didn't need a shirt because bandages covered his entire torso.

* * *

><p>Matt limped his way to the dining room. He noticed that there were only 5 Noah sitting at the round table. One of them looked up and smiled.<p>

"Well look who's finally awake" Tyki said with a smile as he ate his food.

"How long was I out" Matt asked curiosly.

"About 3 days, you overused your madness ability and collapsed before you could finish off the exorcists."

Matt could hear laughter coming from two of the seats as he walked to join Tyki, Road, and Sheril at one side of the table.

"I can't believe you let those stupid exorcists beat the crap out of you" David said laughing with his arm around Jasdero who was laughing as well.

"Yeah, you look like crap, hee" Jasdero said in agreement.

"Shut up, I am not in the mood to put up with any of your crap" Matt said in an angry tone. The twins continued to laugh until their chairs were pushed over and they hit the ground. As the others, except Matt, began to laugh at the twins, the twins stood up with an angry look in their eyes.

"Hey! Why the hell did you knock us over Matt" yelled David.

"Yeah, that wasn't nice, hee" agreed Jasdero.s

"As I already said I am not in the mood to put up with you right now, so it is in your best interest to either shut up or leave" said Matt as he took his seat in between Tyki and Sheril. An akuma maid walked over and asked what Matt wanted to eat. "Eggs and toast, with some green tea" Matt said as he laid his head on the table. The maid bowed and left the room, the twins followed suit shortly after.

"If it means anything, I think the whole bandage thing looks good on you" said Road trying to cheer Matt up.

"Yeah well don't get used to it as soon as my injuries heal I'm taking all the bandages off."

"I know that silly" said Road, ignoring the heavy sarcasm and anger in Matt's voice. "I was just trying to cheer you up."

"Hey Tyki where is everybody?"

"Well, everyone is out on various assignments that the Earl has given us over the last few days. As you can imagine things have really begun to move quickly since you destroyed their old headquarters. As for the Earl, he should be here any minute."

* * *

><p>As Tyki said this the Millennium Earl walked into the room and took his seat. At the same time, Matt's food was served and he began to eat some of the toast.<p>

"Good morning my children" said the Earl in a pleasant tone, "And good morning to you Matt, how are you fealing?"

"Well I have multiple cracked ribs, my head feels like it's going to split and on top of that I can't see out of my left eye. But aside from that I feel fine" Matt gave him a smile but everyone could hear the tension in his voice.

"Are you well enough to fight" asked the earl as he began to eat his own food.

Matt took a sip of his tea. At the same time several spikes shot out from the ground, creating large holes in the ceiling. "Yeah, I think I can fight" said Matt after putting down his tea.

"I don't like this version of Matt" Road whispered to Tyki who merely nodded in agreement.

"Well I'm glad to hear that Matt" the Earl continued, "Because I have a job for you to do."

"Oh? And what exactly do you need me to do?"

"My akuma have discovered a piece of innocence in a small town in Germany. I want you to go there with Road and Tyki, and destroy the innocence. Oh, and if anyone from the Black Order get in your way feel free to kill them."

"Very well" Matt stood up, "Tyki Road we leave in an hour." With that Matt left the room.

* * *

><p>"Tyki, Road before you go, I need to speak with you."<p>

"What is it Lord Millennium" asked Road as she sat of Sheril's lap after eating.

"Let me guess, it's about Matt" added Tyki.

"Yes it is, as you may have noticed, Matt's personality is a bit, well, different.

"Yeah, I don't like it" Road pouted.

"I think he's like this because he wasn't able to control his illusion and because of that he wasn't able to actually beat the exorcists.

"Didn't you tell him he had 5 minutes to wrap things up" asked Sheril.

"Yes I did. Instead, he used his madness ability and lost control after 20 seconds."

"Well while that probably has something to do with it that is not the main problem" the Earl interrupted. "The problem is that he's losing his mind to his own madness. As you all know, Matt is the Noah of Madness, because of this his mind is very unstable, if he were to ever lose complete control, Matt would revert to his true form and we all remember what happened the last time that happened." How could anyone forget, after all the whole reason the new ark was made was because Matt crippled the akuma factory and nearly destroyed the entire ark. "We have no way of controlling him when he is in that form, and as we speak Matt is in danger of losing control. That is where you 2 come into play."

"What do you need us to do" asked Tyki.

"If there is any signs of Matt losing control, you will need to restrain him and have Road use her abilities to calm him down."

As they continued to speak and akuma maid burst through the door.

"I'm sorry sir, I tried to stop him, to have him wait until everyone else had arrived."

"Hold on, calm down what happened" asked the Earl.

"It's Matt, he just left the ark, and his right eye had changed color to red." Everyone stared at the akuma in horror.

"Tyki, Road, you to Sheril, go bring Matt back to the ark now!"

The three nodded and ran out of the room.

* * *

><p>In Germany, Matt was standing at the top of the hill looking over a small village with him were several level 2 akuma. Matt was wearing his replaced his coat with his black cloak, but other than that he was wearing the same clothing.<p>

"So this is where the innocence is" asked Matt his tone of voice had a dark tone to it.

"Yes sir, it's inside the church at the other end of town. It looks to be residing in a grail" answered on of the akuma. "It should also be known that there are several finders and at least 4 exorcists there."

"Good, I was hoping some action. Everyone head down there and begin taking on the Black Order."

"Yes sir" said all the akuma and they ran into the village. Matt waited a moment before entering the village.

**Well once again things are starting to get interesting. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please review. Chapter 10 will be up and ready before you know it!**


	10. The Noah of Madness fully awakens!

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

**Author's Note: This chapter is a bit graphic in terms of violence in comparison to other violent moments. This is why I rated it T (that and the use of language). Regardless Enjoy!**

Matt walked through the town listening to the sound of battle in the distance. While this usually brought a sadistic smile to Matt's face, he instead had a very angry look. As he walked he looked around the village.

"I really don't like the look of this place" Matt grumbled to himself. As he said this without moving his arms spikes began rising above the ground destroying everything as Matt walked past them. After a while he finally reached the church. There were indeed 4 exorcists there fighting off the akuma. One had a spiked ball and chain, another had a halberd, the third had bow and arrow, and the third held a crossbow. There were only 3 akuma left standing when Matt arrived.

"We're sorry sir but they overpowered us" one of the akuma said.

"And what happened to the others?"

"Killed sir."

"Worthless, all of you" Matt shouted, "I've had just about enough of this, you 3" Matt pointed to the 3 akuma.

"Yes sir?"

"I'm done with you. Self-destruct please."

"But sir-"

"NOW" yelled Matt. The 3 akuma bodies expanded then blew up. "I'm sorry you had to see that, I'm not exactly in the best mood right now" said Matt now turning his attention the exorcists. "However, you're in my way and while normally I would just want to hurt you, I really have the urge to just kill you where you stand."

"Like that will happen" one the exorcist with the halberd with pride, "there are 4 of us and only one of you and besides it looks like you're injured this will be a piece of cake." With that he charged at Matt. He swung the halberd into the air and began to bring it down onto Matt. Matt simply closed his eye and sighed. A stone hand erupted from the ground and grabbed the halberd mid swing.

"What the heck? What is this" the exorcist said trying to remove is his weapon from the stone hand's grasp.

"And now you die" Matt said calmly then opened his eye revealing that his right eye's color had changed from gold to red, and the white of his eye turned black. Matt then quickly vanished an in a blink of an eye was behind the attacking exorcist. The exorcist released his grip from his weapon in order to evade the attack but it was far too late. With one swing of his arm, Matt cut the exorcist's head off. Blood poured out of the exorcist as the now headless body slumped to the ground. Matt looked at the head of the now dead exorcist, the look of horror and fear could still be seen in his eyes. All Matt could do was laugh, he didn't really want to but he had an uncontrollable urge to do so.

"You monster" yelled the exorcist with the crossbow and in rapid succession shot multiple bolt infused with innocence at Matt. All of the shot hit their target and now Matt's back was full of crossbow bolts. It took Matt a moment to realize that he had been shot and turned around to face the rest of the exorcists. Now the exorcist with the bow took a few shots at Matt who didn't move a muscle and was in turn hit by all the arrows. Even the exorcist with the spiked ball and chain took a swing at Matt and landed a hit right in Matt's hip. Matt didn't flinch even though he was bleeding. Matt looked down and saw that was in fact hurt. Then his head began to throb.

"I do apologize" Matt managed to say despite the new pain he was feeling. "I'm not exactly feeling quite myself today." As he said this, the dark aura that was seen in his first fight with Kanda began to ooze out of his wounds and began to engulf Matt. The exorcist with the ball and chain began to swing his weapon above his head, preparing for another attack. The exorcist then launched the ball straight at Matt's head but it never reached. The aura surrounding Matt stopped the attack and engulfed the ball. After a moment of trying to pull his weapon out, the ball simply shattered revealing the innocence that the weapon was carrying. After just a short moment the innocence was destroyed leaving only dust.

"No, how did he-"the exorcist was cut off because the aura then wrapped itself around his neck and began to choke him. The remaining exorcist rushed to is aid but just like their other comrade it was too late and all they heard was a loud snap. The aura released the now dead exorcist letting the body fall to the ground.

* * *

><p>The remaining 2 exorcists attempted to flee but when they noticed that a massive wall of stone was surrounding them.<p>

"We have to stop him now, there's no turning back" the exorcist with the bow said and began shooting."

"If we're going to die we might as well go down swinging" agreed the second exorcist and began firing her crossbow. Even though every shot was deflected by the aura they continued to fire at him.

Matt simply laughed, "Time to end this" his voice sounded almost demonic. Then from the back of his shoulders to massive arms shot out. They both hit the ground leaving small craters around them as they began to lift Matt up. His arms formed into large claws and his hair grew out to his waist. Additionally, a pair of demonic wings grew out of his back and a pair of horns grew from his forehead. The two exorcists stopped shooting at him and just stood there jaws dropped. Then the exorcist with the crossbow dropped to her knees and began laughing maniacally.

"Alice what's wrong with you? This is no time to laugh" the exorcist began to shake his friend trying to make her stop, but it didn't help. He then looked up at Matt. "What did you do to her" he yelled, "tell me what you did."

Matt laughed, "I didn't do anything. Your friend has just fallen into madness." He then lifted the right hand holding him up and lifted it over the now laughing exorcist. With a laugh, Matt let the hand crush the exorcist.

"I'm actually rather disappointed. The last time I was free, my opponents put up a much better fight then you 4 did. The last exorcist then backed himself to the wall that was preventing him from escaping. Matt lowered himself to the ground and the two arms retracted into his body.

"It's alright, everything will be over soon" Matt said with a smile as he walked up to the panicking exorcist. "As the last one standing, I'll make your death quick, but I can't guarantee it will be painless. Matt put the palm of his hand on the exorcist's cheek. Matt gave him a smile then two spikes shot out from the wall piercing the exorcist's hands and lifted him into the air. When the exorcist stopped he was in a crucified position, he could barely breath unless he puch himself high enough. Matt then elevated himself to the now struggling exorcist. Matt placed the tip of his index claw on the exorcist's forehead.

"Destroy" Matt simply said and the exorcist's eyes widened. His body slumped down. "I know you can't understand me anymore but I think I'll explain myself anyways. I've just destroyed all sanity within your mind. In other words you're still alive but you are nothing but a shell." Matt began to lower himself. "Oh and I must apologize once again. I promised that your death will be quick, I lied" Matt laughed as he continue to lower himself down to the ground.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile outside the village Tyki , Road, and Sheril arrived at the now destroyed village.<p>

"Yep Matt's here" Road said playfully.

"Now's not the time Road look" said Tyki pointing to the giant wall. "Look at that aura, doesn't it look familiar?"

"You mean to tell me he's-" Sheril began to say.

"Yes, Matt has completely lost control" Tyki finished Sheril's sentence. "We need to get him under control before the madness within his own mind completely swallows him."

"And what will happen if that happens" asked Road.

"If you can't pull him out of his own madness then we will have no choice but to kill him."

"Right" Road had a sad look on her face; she did not want to kill him.

"Road understand that he won't hesitate to kill you he's swallowed by the madness. You'll be doing him a favor."

"I know, let's go." The three then ran into the village hoping that they can save their young family member.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review. Chapter 11 is still being worked on and should be up in tomorrow.**


	11. Battle within Matt's mind!

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man (big surprise there)**

Tyki, Road, and Sheril reached the large wall that separated them from Matt. They could hear the sound of conflict coming from the inside.

"Tyki you need to get us through the wall" said Road a worried look could be seen in her eyes.

"I know, you don't need to tell me" Tyki used his teez to create a weapon, similar to the one used to fight Lavi in Edo. Tyki went and punched the wall causing a large hole to form in the wall. As the 3 Noah walked through they saw what was left of the people Matt was fighting. Then they saw Matt walking away from the now crucified exorcist.

"So it's true, Matt has awakened" Sheril said in a sad tone.

"Don't give up hope yet, there's still a chance that he can be saved" Tyki said trying to encourage everyone. Just then Matt noticed the 3 Noah.

"Tyki, Road, Sheril, it is so good to see you! Aren't you proud of me? I killed the exorcists and now I'm going to destroy the innocence" Matt said with a smile.

"Matt you need to return to your normal form, and go back to the ark and rest we will take care of everything else" Tyki said hoping that he could talk Matt back into sanity.

"Now why would I do that" asked Matt, his smile was now gone. "I like this power, and I don't want to let go of it."

"That's the madness talking Matt you need to fight it!"

Matt's voice suddenly changed to its demonic tone. "I refuse to go back. I've been trapped in there for far too long. The Matt you know is now gone." Matt started to laugh then a large arm sprouted from his back and lunged at them. All three managed to dodge out of the way.

"Sheril you need to control Matt's body long enough for Road to enter his mind. After that watch after Road so that Matt doesn't accidentally kill her."

"What about you Tyki" asked Sheril.

"I will keep him distracted after Road enters his mind. He's bound to go berserk just like last time."

"Right, I understand" said Sheril who raised his hands like a puppeteer. Suddenly Matt was unable to move.

"What's going on here" Matt asked himself as he tried to move.

"Now Road" yelled Tyki. Road then ran up to Matt and place her hand on Matt's forehead and closed her eyes.

Road opened her eyes and looked around. She was in Matt's mind once before, when he last lost control. It looked like a large and complicated city. This time however was different. The city that was Matt's mind was completely destroyed. As far as she could see not a single building stood, there was only rubble. Road could hear what sounded like a child crying echoing throughout the ruined city. Road wandered the ruins following the sound of crying until she saw a small child sitting on a pile of rubble. Surrounding the child were 13 corpses. Road looked at them and saw that that they were corpses of all the members of the Noah Clan. She approached the child and put her hand on the child's shoulder.

"It's ok, everything is going to be alright" said Road trying to comfort the boy. The boy looked up at Road. Road instantly recognized the child as Matt when he was around 8 years old. The last time she saw Matt in this world he was the same age as he was in the real world, so this came as quite a shock to Road.

"I lost everybody" the boy cried, "They're all dead."

"It's alright, I'm here to help" said Road putting her hand on his head and pushing his hair back. Her eyes widened when she saw a single cross shaped stigmata on his forehead. "How long have you had that mark on your forehead?"

"Ever since I can remember" the boy sniffed, his crying was dying down now that he wasn't alone. "People used to always make fun of me because of it. But it doesn't matter anymore."

"And why is that?"

"Because they're all dead. Some weird spikes came out of the ground and killed them all." _Don't tell me he's been a Noah all his life_, Road thought to herself, _but if that's the case why didn't we find him sooner._

"What are you doing here" a dark voice came from behind them. Road turned around to see whose voice it was, but all she saw was a giant shadow figure. "You do not belong here leave this place at once."

"I can't do that I'm here to help Matt" Road said as she stood in between Matt and the shadowy figure.

"Help him? HA!" The figure laughed. "There's no helping him. I mean look at him, he's a wreck now. But I suppose that's my fault. I should've just killed him and taken complete control before you and your annoying friends arrived. Alas, nothing can be done about that now; it looks like I'll just have to kill both you and the boy now."

"Don't tell me you're the madness?"

"That's right" the figure said with a smile. "My name is Majnun."

"Majnun please give Matt back to us" Road pleaded.

"Why should I? The Noah had plenty of time and warning that I was taking over."

"What are you talking about? Matt only lost control today."

"Are you really so naïve? Matt was losing control ever since his fight with that exorcist with the katana blade. I mean really his personality began to change over the last few weeks, and then he used my ability power to fight the exorcists at their old headquarters. This was inevitable; he knew all too well that unleashing me would cause this."

"Then it looks like I'll have to defeat you and take Matt's mind out of your grip" said Road as she materialized hundreds of candles and launched them at the Majnun. To her horror, every candle passed straight through him. "What the hell? Why can't I hit him?" As soon as she said this Majnun's arm extended out, grabbing Road by the neck, and pushing her against a collapsed wall.

"This is my world Road Kamelot, do you really think you can hurt me here?"

"I'm pretty sure I can" Road said with a grin. Then an image of Matt as he usually is appeared behind Majnun. He turned his arm into a sword and swung it at his neck. Matt's arm went straight through Majnun's neck but there was no contact. His neck simply turned into smoke then formed back into his neck after Matt had finished his attack.

"Such petty tricks won't work on me" Majnun said with an evil smile. He rose his other arm and pointed it at the illusionary Matt.

"Disappear" Majnun said, and instantly the illusion vanished.

"But how" Road managed to say as she was being choked.

"It's simple, when one is lost in the madness, they are no longer fooled by illusions, they see the world in a whole new light. There is nothing you can do." Majnun began to tighten his grip on Road when a large spike burst through his chest. "What's this" Majnun asked in curiosity then turned his head around. His eyes widened to see that the child Matt was no longer there but the real version of Matt standing there.

"Majnun" Matt yelled, "You will not lay a finger on my family."

"Is that so" Majnun answered dropping Road to the ground. "And how exactly are you going to do about it."

"I'll lock you up again and this time I will never allow you out."

"I'd like to see you try." Majnun broke the spike the pierced his chest and threw it at Matt's head then disappeared. Matt simply tilted his head and the spike flew past him impaling itself on another wall. Matt hen walked up to Road giving her a hand.

"Thank you Road for coming here" Matt said with a smile. "Thanks to you I have the courage to face Majnun."

"It isn't only me you know. Tyki and Sheril are out there right now fighting you."

"Is that so? Well I'll have to thank them later. But right now I need to deal with Majnun."

"But he's too powerful Matt; I can't even land a hit on him. What makes you think you can?"

"It's alright, I can hit him because I'm using my abilities to fight him. Because it's my mind and if I want to hit him I will." Matt looked out into the ruins and watched as several spikes rose into the air. One of them had Majnun on it, his body fully pierced by the massive spike. "See what I mean?"

"I guess, but then why didn't you defeat him before?"

"Because I feared him too much, but not anymore." With that said Matt charged at Majnun who had recovered from the attack.

Road just sat there watching the battle within Matt's mind unfold. Stone spikes erupted out of the ground, and every once in a while there would be a large impact on the ground. What felt like an age had passed and the battle finally returned to where Road was sitting. Both Matt and Majnun seemed fairly beat up from the fight.

"Hey Majnun" Matt said with a grin.

"What?"

"What do you say we put an end to this with a bet?"

"What kind of bet?"

"It's simple I lock you away in a prison, and if you can escape within 2 minutes you can have permanent control of my mind. However If you can't then you must forever stay in that prison and lend me your power whenever I choose."

"Matt don't do that" Road screamed, "its way to risky!"

Majnun just thought about it for a moment then gave Matt an evil grin. "Deal" he said and shook Matt's hand.

"Good" Matt then raised his hand and a large building began to form around Majnun. After a moment there was a massive fortress. "Ok you're all set to go" Matt yelled into the fortress.

"Matt, do you really think it's such a good idea to be doing this" Road asked standing up.

"Completely, I know I will win because Majnun can't break through my ability if he doesn't have enough control over my mind." Two minutes passed and Matt ntered the fortress with Road right behind him. As they walked through the hallways they finally reached a gian sealed door.

"Hey Majnun, how you doing in there" asked Matt in a sarcastic voice.

"You bastard" Majnun yelled, "you tricked me!"

"Indeed I did, but a bet is a bet."

"Fine, you win this round." With that the shadowy figure vanished.

"Matt where did he go" Road asked in concern.

"Don't worry he just doesn't want to be seen, he's still there" Matt laughed a little.

"Quit rubbing it in and leave" Majnun's disembodied voice said. Road and Matt then left the fortress.

"Hey Road I think it's time for you to leave my mind, I have a lot of rebuilding to do as you can see."

"Aww, I wanted to stay in here a little while longer" complained Road.

"Yes well I'm sure Tyki and Sheril are worried about your safety. Don't worry about a thing; you'll see me again in the real world.

"I'll hold you to it" Road playfully punched Matt, and then closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>Road awoke and she was back in the real world. She looked around and saw that there was a massive battle taking place here as well. She finally saw Matt lying on the ground with both Tyki and Sheril sitting on the ground panting. She immediately ran over to them.<p>

"Daddy, Tyki, are you both ok" asked Road as she hugged Sheril.

"We're alright Road, but Matt put up more of a fight than expected." Road finished hugging Sheril and looked at Matt who was beginning to open his eyes (the bandage on his left eye had been removed sometime during the battle between Tyki and Sheril, he could see just fine out of the eye).

"What happened" Matt asked as he leaned up.

"You, that's what happened" Tyki said offering to help him stand up.

"What are you talking about" asked Matt as he accepted Tyki's offer to help him up.

"Look around you." Matt looked around and saw all the destruction and bodies.

"Wait did I do this?"

"Yep, you completely lost control and had the Noah inside of you awaken. And let be the first to say you gave us quite a hard time."

"I'm sorry" said Matt.

"Don't worry about it Matt" said Tyki putting his arm on Matt's back. "After all you killed 4 exorcists and in our little fight managed to destroy the innocence we were sent to destroy."

"Yeah, I'll guess I'll just have to take your word for it" Matt said with a smile. "By the way can we go home, I'm really tired."

"Sure thing, let's go."

"So Matt are you going to leave your hair at that length" asked Road as they were walking back to the portal.

"What are you talking about" Matt asked as he went to feel his hair, his eyes widening as his hand followed the length of it. "What the hell happened to my hair?"

"It grew duh" Road said in a playfully sarcastic voice.

"Yeah, I think I'm gonna cut it when I get back to the ark."

"No fair! I wanted to show everyone your hair" Road pouted.

"What? I would never allow that, everyone would laugh!"

"That's the whole point" Road pointed out.

"Cruel as ever" Tyki said to himself as they entered the portal.

* * *

><p>A few hours later Lenalee, along with Noise Marie and General Tiedoll arrived at the village.<p>

"It looks like we're too late" Tiedoll said looking over the village.

"Oh no, I hope everyone is alright" said Lenalee.

"I don't hear anything coming from the village" Marie pointed out.

"Then let's hurry up and get down there" said Tiedoll and the 3 of them rushed into the village.

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter, please review. Also I would like to say that the first two chapters of the prequel to this story ****Birth of Madness****will be going up today. Should also mention that that this story will continue as my main priority. Also before I forget, there will be a one-shot story that will be about the battle between Tyki, Sheril, and Matt taking place at the same time as this chapter. It will be coming out this weekend. Anyways that being said chapter 12 coming soon.**


	12. Time to catch a train!

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt picks up a piece of innocence off the ground and stares at it. Road skips toward Matt after killing a finder.

"Matt are you just going to stare at it or are you going to destroy it" Road asked impatiently. Matt lifted his head and looked at her.

"What, sorry, I was just thinking about something" Matt crushed the innocence then stood up brushing the dust off his clothes.

"So how many does this make for you now" asked Road as she kicked a stone.

"This makes" Matt hesitated for a moment to think. "Six I believe."

"Really? I could've sworn you've destroyed more than that."

"Well I could have if I destroyed the innocence of those 4 exorcists two years ago" Matt pointed out.

"Well you did manage to destroy 2 of them."

"No, I destroyed 1 of the exorcists' innocence, and I believe Tyki destroyed the innocence we were looking for. Come on I wasn't even myself at that time and I know that."

"Hey, I was inside your mind trying to save your sorry butt from yourself" Road said now upset a little.

"You're right, you're right. I'm sorry, and I believed I still haven't stopped thanking you over the last 2 years."

"I know but I told you if you were really thankful, you would grow your hair out again." Matt felt the hair on his head. Ever since that day he has kept his hair very short.

"And I told you that that was not going to happen." Road pouted her face and Matt sighed in defeat. "Fine if I were to ever go back into that form I will keep my hair long."

"No fair! You won't go back into your awakened form because you sealed Majnun away" Road protested.

"Take it or leave it" said Matt crossing his arms across his chest.

"Fine I'll take it."

"Good, now let's go home, I'm freaking starving" said Matt. Road laughed and began to follow him. Behind them lied a pile of bodies all from their recent attack.

"So how many did we kill" asked Road as they entered one of her doors.

"Twelve finders and 2 exorcists. Come on Road you need to pay attention more, we split the work load in half."

"Blah, blah, blah" Road mocked Matt who only laughed at her. They returned to the ark only to be greeted by one of the maids.

"Great this can't be a good sign" Matt said almost sarcastically as they approached the maid.

"Welcome back" the maid said, bowing at the same time.

"Yes, yes what do you want" Matt asked, "I'm starving and I want to eat."

"I'm terribly sorry my lord, but the Earl has a new mission for you to complete."

"Oh come on I just finished, don't I get a break or something" complained Matt.

"No you don't" laughed Road.

"I wouldn't be laughing, because you're coming as well" Matt said with a smug look on his face.

"Actually Lord Kamelot has asked for Mistress Road to return home after her mission was complete."

"Oh you have got to be kidding me, you mean to tell me I have to do this alone" said Matt as Road laughed at him.

"No sir. You will be meeting up with Lord Mikk."

"Is that so? Where am I meeting him" asked Matt.

"You will be meeting him in America, outside of Grand Central Station in New York City."  
>"Is there Innocence there" asked Matt. Road hit Matt on the back of the head.<p>

"You wouldn't be going if there wasn't" Road pointed out.

"That was rhetorical" said Matt.

"Didn't sound rhetorical to me" muttered Road.

"Hey Road can you open a portal to New York?"

"Nope" Road said with an evil smile.

"Fine I'll just use an ark gate" said Matt walking away.

"Hey Matt come back soon I wanna play sometime" Road said waving at him. Matt shuttered a little then smiled at her.

"Sure thing Road, but will it be with or without a handicap?"

"I was hoping without" said Road.

"Then I'll make sure to make this quick" and with that Matt left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt arrived in New York inside a hospital. As he stepped out of the gate a large, fat man approached him.<p>

"Welcome to New York City master Noah. The Millennium Earl contacted me that you would be arriving here today" said the man with a smile.

Matt looked at the man in confusion. "I'm sorry, do I know you?" The man simply laughed.

"No,no, I am merely a humble Broker for the Earl. My name is Abraham" said the man with a polite bow.

"Yes, it's nice to meet you, now if you don't mind I need to find my way to Grand Central Station" said Matt as he walked past Abraham. Matt walked outside into the busy city and looked around, he hadn't mentioned it before but he had no idea where Grand Central Station is.

"Great where am I supposed to go now" Matt sighed.

"Actually you take a left here, and then take another your fifth right and you're there" a voice said from behind him, which startled him.

"What the-." Matt said turning around, only to see Abraham standing there. "Oh it's just you."

"If you want I can take you there."

"No, that's alright, the hospital is slow today and really it's no big deal, it's only a ten minute walk."

Matt was getting annoyed with the broker and quickly put his hand on the broker's forehead.

"Destroy" said Matt and the broker slumped to the ground. Matt, now realized what he had done began to panic a little. But realizing that not even he could fix the situation, he simply looked around, and seeing that no one noticed ran off in the direction that the broker had mentioned, right before Matt drove the man insane.

* * *

><p>Matt finally found his way to Grand Central Station. He looked around for Tyki but he was nowhere to be seen. Then he saw another man walking towards him.<p>

"Not again" Matt said to himself, but before he could say anything the man approaching him spoke.

"Ah, my lord, I have a message for you from lord Mikk." This caught Matt's attention.

_I guess I won't destroy his mind quite yet_, Matt thought to himself. "And what is the message" Matt asked.

The man cleared his throat, and then spoke, quoting Tyki word for word.

"Matt it appears you are late as usual. Here is the situation, a group of finders have managed to recover the innocence that was here and are on their way to the American Branch as we speak. I have taken the last train out heading for Chicago, Illinois. Ironically, this is the same train the finders are on. I want you to catch up to the train so we can take the innocence together as were the Earl's instructions. Can't wait to see you on the train."

"Is that it" asked Matt after the man had finished speaking.

"Yes sir. Lord Mikk departed just over an hour ago, so you will need to get going if you want to catch him."

"Don't worry about that, I will be able to catch up with the train in no time."

"If you don't mind me asking but how are you going to catch a train?"

"I don't mind you asking, but that doesn't mean I'm going to tell you. Don't worry about how I'm going to do it; all I need you to do is cause a distraction."

"And what kind of distraction are we talking about?"

"I'll let you decide but make sure you get started" Matt paused and looked at his wrist, pretending to look at a watch, "right now."

"Yes sir!" With that said the man transformed into an akuma and began attacking the people inside the station.

"Not quite what I had in mind but it'll do" Matt shrugged and rushed to the train track. Not knowing which track to follow Matt asked one of the employees there.

"Excuse me sir, which way did the train to Chicago go?"

"The train to Chicago was on track 2 heading west" said the employee pointing in that direction. "Why do you need to know?"

"I have a train to catch" said Matt as he quickly placed his hand on the man's forehead. Without saying a word the man broke out into maniacal laughter.

Matt stepped onto the tracks and began to run. His speed increased with every step, mainly because a small foot-size rock would shoot out of the ground giving Matt more momentum. In no time at all, Matt was running at blinding speed. It didn't take long before Matt reached a bridge. Instead of running across the bridge, or attempting to jump the large gap, Matt simply created s stone arch which he rode all the way to the other side, where he started running again.

"I should've done something a bit flashier" Matt said to himself as he continued to run. Like Matt said to the akuma, it didn't take long for him to reach the train. With a single jump Matt landed on top of the train. With his black cloak flapping in the wind, Matt walked to the end of the second car and jumped into through a window. Inside the private booth, reading a book was Tyki Mikk. He looked up to see Matt and gave him a welcoming smile.

"Well that took longer than expected" Tyki said looking back to his book.

"Yeah well you did have an hour head start" Matt said taking the seat across from Tyki. "So where are the finders?"

"The next train up. They have the entire train locked down, nobody is allowed in there except for the train employees." After a few moments of silence, Matt finally spoke.

"So are we going to sit here, or are we going to retrieve the innocence?"

"Patience Matt. We have all night to worry about it. I ordered some food a while ago; it should be here any moment. Let's have dinner first before we do anything."

Matt slumped his head back. "Fine have it your way. You know it kind of feels like we're about to rob a train" Matt said with a laugh.

"Well that's because what we're going to do is infact a train robbery of sorts."

**Thank you for reading! Reviews are appreciated. Chapter 13 coming soon. Also the prequel Birth of Madness is now up and I will be actively working on that story as well. Until next time! :D**


	13. Train robbery

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man **

Matt finished eating the meal that Tyki had ordered for him. When he finished he leaned back in satisfaction.

"So, I was wondering, how are we going to go about this" asked Matt.

"Well, first off you are going to attack the first private booth in the next train and search for the piece of innocence. Regardless if they have they have it or not, I'm sure that the rest of the finders will attempt to flee. We'll kill them all and then ride the train to Chicago before we head back to the ark."

"I don't see why you need me for this. From what I can tell, any single Noah could do this without problem."

"That is true, but we haven't worked together in a while so I thought it would be a nice change of pace" said Tyki, now finishing his meal. "Well we might as will get started. We don't want to keep the finders waiting now do we?" Tyki placed his top hat on his head.

"No, I suppose we shouldn't, but hey, I don't want to do all the work, so make sure you kill at least a few of them ok?" Matt said as he stood up and began to stretch his arms and back.

* * *

><p>The two left the booth and began to head towards the next train car. At the door that connected the two cars was a conductor.<p>

"I apologize, but the next train is off limits, I'm afraid you must remain here in this car. Matt lifted his arm and aimed the palm of his hand at the man. A spike the width of his palm came out then shot forward impaling itself into the conductor's head. Matt shook his hand a little.

"A little bit of kickback I see" Tyki said looking at Matt's hand.

"It's not too bad now; it used to be a lot worse. You should know, you were there when I first learned to that Tyki" said Matt as he opened the train door to the next car. The two walked up to the first door and Matt knocked on it.

"Who is it" asked a voice from inside.

"The food you ordered is ready sir" Matt said with a grin on his face.

"Food? We didn't order any food" the door opened a little and the finder looked out. When he saw the two Noah his eyes widened. "Crap." Matt kicked the door open send the finder to the ground. Matt then placed his hand on the door and the entire booth was filled with wooden spikes. Matt retracted the spikes and began to search the dead finders.

"Hey Matt I thought you didn't need to use your hands to use you manipulation ability."

"I don't, I do that mainly because it's flashier."

"Of course it is."

"Damn it! These guys don't have it."

"Alright on to the next booth." Tyki said as he walked to the next door. He walked through the door and looked around, there was nobody there, but the window was fully open. He walked into the room Matt was in.

"Hey Matt, it looks like a group of finders have fled to the roof of the train. Do you think you can handle it?"

"I suppose, just make sure there isn't anyone left in the car" said Matt as he opened the window and crawled out onto the roof. Once there he noticed 4 finders running the length of the train.

"Hurry we need to get the front of the train so we can contact the order" said one of the finders. One of the finders looked back and saw Matt walking towards them.

"Crap it's Matt" yelled the finder.

"You mean the one responsible for the massacre in Germany two years ago?"

"Yeah, that's him we need to hurry we don't stand a chance!'

One of the finders stopped running. "You guys go on ahead, I'll hold him back" said the finder pulling out a revolver from under his coat.

"But that's suicide! You won't last 30 seconds with him" yelled one of the finders.

"We need enough time to contact the Black Order, every second counts, now go!" The 23 other finders nodded their heads and continued down the train.

"How noble of you, sacrificing yourself for the good of the group" Matt said in a condescending tone. But do you really think that silly weapon will do you any good?"

The finder's hand were shaking violently but still took a shot at Matt. The shot hit Matt square in the head, forcing Matt to the ground. The finder laughed hysterically.

_I can't believe that that actually worked_, the finder thought to himself looking at the gun in his hand. Then he saw movement in the corner of his eyes. His eyes widened in horror as he saw Matt standing up. The bullet hit, but all he saw were cracks surrounding the bullet hole. Matt pulled the bullet out and looked at it and smiled.

"Well, that stung a little" said Matt dropping the bullet. He lifted both hands, shooting two spikes out of his hand. One hit the finder in the leg, the other in his hand, forcing him to drop the gun which rolled off the edge of the train. Fear could be seen in the finder's eyes as Matt stood over him.

"Tell me finder, where's the innocence" asked Matt who crouched down to the level of the finder.

"Like I would ever tell you" the finder managed to say, but Matt could hear the terror in his voice, which made him smile.

"You know, they say that fear is the leading cause of madness. Fear of being alone, fear of loss, the list goes on and on" said Matt. "But do you know what my favorite is on that list?" The finder shook his head. "It's a fairly basic fear, one that everyone has: the fear of death. I have seen many people drive themselves insane from that one fear alone. So tell me finder" Matt placed his hand on the side of the finder's head, "do you fear death?" The finder sat there unable to move, he had the sudden urge to live. "Just tell me who has the innocence, and I will spare your life."

"The finder names Andrew" the finder said almost instantly, "he was on the top of the train with me."

"Thank you very much" smiled Matt as he stood up and walked past the finder.

* * *

><p>The 3 finders climbed into the front of the train.<p>

"What's going on here" asked the conductor, expecting it to be a train robbery.

"We're from the Black Order, sir we need that phone you have there" said a finder.

"I don't see what this phone will do for you. This phone only communicates to the other cars.

"Don't worry we can still use it, Andrew hand me the golem" the finder said holding out his hand.

"I don't have it remember? Jack has it" said Andrew.

"Fine, Jack, give me the golem."

"Here" said Jack pulling out the golem. Just then Matt jumped down and the door to the front of the train burst open crushing Jack and the golem. Matt walked in and Andrew pulled out a pistol and was about to aim it at Matt when Matt hit Andrew, sending him into the wall and slumping to the ground unconscious. Matt walked up to the last finder.

"Are you the finder called Andrew" asked Matt. The finder, realizing that Matt knew who held the innocence quickly nodded. "Excellent" Matt said with a smile. A spike formed in Matt's palm, but instead of shooting it he rammed it into the finder's neck. The finder squirmed for a moment before dying. Matt wiped the blood off his hand with a cloth before searching the finder. During the search, Matt came across the finder's identification card. After reading it Matt sighed in disappointment.

"Why would you throw your life away so easily?" Matt looked up at the terrified conductor. "Don't worry I'm not here to harm you or your passengers. These men simply took something of my family and I have come to retrieve it. Just keep the train on schedule ok?" The conductor nodded once and Matt smiled. "Good." Matt turned around and noticed that the finder he hit was gone. Matt shook his head. "Why do they always run?" That being said, Matt entered the next car.

Andrew was running through the car attracting a lot of attention when he felt a sharp pain through his back. He fell to the floor revealing 2 spikes coming out from his back. Many of the passengers screamed as the finder fell.

"Everyone remain calm, and silent" said Matt as he walked down the aisle. "It would be in everyone's best interest if they do not do anything." Matt walked up to the body and searched his pockets. After a moment he pulled out the piece of innocence and destroyed it. Matt stepped over the finder and began to walk away. Just then a man, trying to be a hero, noticed the gun that the finder had on him. He picked up the gun and aimed it at Matt's back. But before he could get a shot off Matt swung around and stabbed him with his arm (now in the form of a sword).

"I thought I told everyone to not do anything" Matt said with a frown. "Now you're about to die, all because you wanted to play the hero." Matt pulled his arm out and walked away.

Two cars down Matt ran into Tyki.

"So how did it go" Tyki asked.

"The innocence has been found and destroyed."

"Very good, now let's head back to our booth, I am quite tired."

"I take it you took care of the remaining finders?"

"I am surprised you doubt me" Tyki said with a frown.

"No, I just know how much you hate getting your gloves dirty" Matt laughed.

"While that is usually true, I took care of everything this time" said Tyki as they went back to their private booth.

**Well I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. Please review. Chapter 14 coming soon!**


	14. Sparring match: Matt vs Road

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Tyki and Matt left the train in Chicago, as they left Tyki yawned.

"Man for sleeping on a train I slept pretty well, how about you Matt" asked Tyki.

"Tyki, you know I don't sleep much anymore."

"Oh yeah, that's right" said Tyki after jokingly thinking for a second. "When was the time you slept?"

"Three weeks and 2 days I believe" said Matt as they continued to walk.

"That's just not natural" Tyki said with a laugh.

"You forget Tyki, we're super human, there's almost nothing natural about us."

Tyki laughed some more,"Yeah I guess you're right. Hey you wanna smoke" asked Tyki with a cigarette in his hand.

"Sure why not" Matt said taking the cigarette out of Tyki's hand. Matt lit it and began to smoke. "I've never understood what's so appealing about smoking" said Matt as he exhaled.

"For most, it's because of addiction. At least, that's what I think" said Tyki as he smoked his own cigarette. "As for me, I just do it to either relieve me of stress, or for the heck of it."

"Stress relief? When have you ever been stressed?"

"If I recall correctly, you were the cause of some stress."

"Oh, that's right" Matt laughed to himself. Just then an akuma disguised as a man approached them.

"Lord Mikk, Lord Matthew, I take it your mission was successful?"

"In fact it was. We destroyed the innocence and those who were carrying it" said Tyi with a little bit of pride. Matt stayed silent that he let a single finder live, he thought that it wasn't a big deal if one survives.

"Well that's good to hear, I take it that you will let the Earl know then Tyki" the akuma asked.

"Wait, why don't I tell him, I told Road that I would be coming back anyways" said Matt.

"I'm sorry my lord, but the Earl has another mission for you."

"Oh come on this would be my third mission without a break" Matt protested. "Tell the Earl I will do his mission after he gives me a few days of rest."

"But my lord" the akuma was about to continue but Matt interrupted.

"That is an order akuma."

"Of course, it will be done" the akuma bowed and walked away.

"Matt what if that mission had been an important one" Tyki asked.

"Then to bad, the Earl has been working me like a dog the past week, I want to go back home and rest a little. Plus, you know how Road gets when she doesn't get what she wants."

"I can see your point" agreed Tyki. "Well then, I suppose you should get going then" an ark gate opened in front of them.

"Wait, are you coming as well? I thought you were going to let the Earl know about how our mission went."

"I can just call him. I haven't been out this way before so I'm going to take in the sights."

"Wait, that sounds like fun, can I join you?"

"Nope" said Tyki and he pushed Matt into the gate which closed immediately.

* * *

><p>"Tyki you jerk" Matt said to himself as he finished his cigarette. After a moment of walking Matt entered the ark. Matt entered his room, and the first thing he saw was Road lying on his bed.<p>

"Road" Matt said in surprise, "what are you doing here?"

Road looked over and smiled, "Waiting for you silly."

"But why?"

"You said that you would play with me after your mission, remember?"

"Of course I remember. I was just hoping that you would forget" Matt said with a grin.

"Now why would I forget, we always have so much fun!"

"If memory serves me right, you tend to have more fun than me."

"But you said that there would be no handicap so why are you complaining?"

"Because you don't hold back. I'm not looking to get myself killed you know."

"Oh you worry too much now come on." Road jumped off his bed and grabbed his arm.

The two made it to the training room where Road finally stopped pulling Matt's arm.

* * *

><p>"You ready" Road asked putting her hands behind her back.<p>

"So impatient" Matt said stretching the arm Road was pulling, "but yes, I am ready."

"Good" said Road and she created a pocket dimension.

Matt looked around the empty dimension when he heard the sound of voices coming from behind him. Matt turned around to see every exorcist he has ever faced approaching him.

"See this is exactly what I mean" Matt yelled knowing Road could hear him. "Could you at least give me something that I can use my abilities with?"

"Fine" Road's voice echoed and the ground turned to stone.

"Excellent" said Matt and he snapped his finger. As he does this the ground begins to rise in small mounds around him. Then the lumps began taking form, as they raise from the ground they slowly begin to look more and more human. After a moment twenty stone figures, looking identical to Matt were now standing next to Matt. Matt simply waved his hand at the group of exorcists and the cloned Matt's charged into battle. Matt was standing by watching the battle unfold, when an exorcist, carrying twin blades, broke through and charged at Matt. The exorcist swung his first sword at Matt who easily side stepped the attack. The exorcist then swung his second sword but again Matt easily ducked out of the way. Matt, after ducking, turned his arms into swords and began attacking the exorcist. The battle seemed even with both of them blocking and dodging the other's attacks. Finally, Matt leapt at the exorcist. Turning one of his arms back to normal, he vaulted over the exorcist landing behind him, and then in one strike stabbed the exorcist, causing it to fade away.

Matt then saw something in the corner of his eye. As he turned he was met with a kick to the gut sending him flying back. When Matt recovered he saw that the one who kicked him was Lenalee. Matt focused on her but then in a blink of an eye she was gone. A fraction of a second later he was kicked in the back sending him flying into the ground leaving an impact trail.

"Damn it, I still can't keep up with her" Matt said to himself, lying on the ground. Matt looked up to see that Lenalee was about to kick him while he was down. But before she could land the kick, a spike pierced her chest. She stared at it for a moment before fading away.

"You should know by now Road, no matter how hurt I am, as long as I'm touching the ground, I can still attack" Matt said standing to his feet. Matt looked around and noticed that the only people left standing were 4 of his clones. "Well Road, it looks like I won this round."

Road appeared in front of Matt causing the clones to attack her. Before they could get very far, Matt snapped his fingers and they crumbled away.

"No fair I want a do over" Road pouted.

"Not a chance, I won this time fair and square" Matt said with a smile. They watched as Road closed the dimension and after a few seconds were standing back in the training room. Matt began walk away.

"Hey Matt" Road called out, Matt turned around and looked at her.

"What's up?"

"You lied to me. You said that the fight would be without a handicap."

"I'm sorry about that Road, but you were still holding back on me so there was no way I would fight you without a handicap."

"You're mean, you know that, right?"

"Next time I promise."

"I'll make you pay if you lie to me again" Road said with a smile.

"I'm sure you will" Matt said with a smile.

"What are you going to do now Matt?"

"Well first I'm going to change clothes. Then I was thinking about going to Paris, it's been a while, and the last time I was there was to meet Allen Walker, so I think I'm going to take in the sights."

"Can I come" Road asked with hope.

"Sorry Road, I want to spend some time alone right now" said Matt, Road frowned. Matt looked at her and was a little upset by the face Road was making. "Tell you what, next time you want to go somewhere, I'll go with you." Road looked at Matt with happiness.

"Deal."

Matt waved good-bye to Road and left the room.

**I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. As always please review. Chapter 15 coming soon!**


	15. Captured

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt arrived in Paris not long after leaving Road. Matt, wanting to see a play later that night decided to wear a tuxedo, as well as his black cloak. Because he had several hours before the play actually started, Matt decided to see the sights. He traveled to the Louvre and spent much of his time exploring the halls and admiring the artwork there. Matt also traveled to Notre Dame Cathedral. He didn't enter though because as a Noah he was not in good standings with the Church. Finally, Matt reached the Eiffel Tower. Matt walked to the center of it when he stopped.

"How long are you going to hide in the shadow" Matt asked. Then several exorcists appeared out of the shadows. "So I was right after all" Matt said to himself. "What is it you want?"

"You're a Noah, it's our job to defeat you, what do you think our job is" said one of the exorcists.

"Really? I always figured your job was to get in our way" Matt said sarcastically, "but if it's a fight you want, then I'd be more than happy to-." Matt felt a needle pierce his skin. He pushed back the person who hit him. As he turned around he saw an empty syringe hit the ground next to the exorcist that he pushed back.

"What the hell did you do exorcist" Matt said infuriated. He turned his arm into a sword and was about to strike when his vision suddenly became blurry.

"What's going on" Matt said to himself. He started to stumble and eventually collapsed. The last thing Matt saw was the group of exorcists surrounding him.

* * *

><p>When Matt finally opened his eyes he was in a dark room.<p>

_What's going on? Where am I?_ Matt thought to himself. He tried to move his arms but met resistance. He looked at his arms to see them completely bandaged with strange seals placed on each arm. He also noticed that his wrists were chained to the ground.

"What the heck" Matt asked himself. He looked down and noticed that he had different clothes on. Instead of his tux, he had on a fairly loose fitting white shirt and pants. He then noticed that his legs were also chained to the ground. Then he saw that the same seals were located all across his body.

"Great, it looks like I won't be going home for a while" Matt laughed, "I can't use my powers." Just then the sound of the door opening caught his attention. A tall man with a small mustache under his nose walked in.

"And who might you be" Matt asked, a calm look came over his face.

"Malcolm C. Rouvelier. And you are the Matt, also known as the 15th apostle, the Noah of Madness." The tall man said as he walked up to Matt.

"I'm flattered that you know who I am" Matt said with a smile. Rouvelier punched Matt in the face when he finally reached him.

"I apologize, I have been keeping that bottled up for nearly 2 years." Rouvelier said as he composed himself.

"That's quite alright" Matt said with a smile despite being hit. "I've been giving the Black Order plenty of problems recently. How many exorcists have I killed now?"

"Fifteen" Rouvelier said with a growl.

"That's right. But you should be grateful; I didn't destroy all of the innocence that they carried."

"DO you honestly think that we will forgive you just because you didn't destroy some innocence?"

"Well that would certainly be-."

"Shut up" Rouvelier yelled. Matt's face became suddenly serious.

"So what is you want from me Rouvelier? You want me to tell you where the ark is? The names and locations of all the Noah? OR maybe you want me to tell you where Allen Walker is?" Rouveliers eyes widened when Matt mentioned Allen, but then composed himself.

"No. I am not here about any of those things. I am here to tell you that you will be experimented on as we find a way to permanently kill the Noah. So in other words I've come to tell you that you're going to die here." Matt smiled at his comment.

"Well then, I look forward to working with you" Matt said sarcastically. Rouvelier simply turned around and walked away. Once he left the cell the door was slammed shut and the sound of the locking could be heard. Matt simply began laughing.

* * *

><p>The following day Lenalee heard the news that Matt had been captured. She rushed to see her brother. Komui was looking over some documents when she ran into the room.<p>

"Brother is it true" Lenalee asked. Her brother looked up at her.

"Lenalee what's wrong" Komui asked in a worried tone.

"Is it true that they captured the Noah of Madness?"

"Yes its true" Komui's face became serious.

"What's going to happen?"

"From what I heard they are going to experiment on him so we can find out how to permanently kill a Noah."

"Aren't they going to question him or something? Can't we find out where Allen is?"

"I'm sorry Lenalee. I was told that he was not going to be interrogated, and that the experiments begin tomorrow." Lenalee couldn't accept the fact that they weren't trying to find Allen and she stormed off. Komui looked worried but he knew that there was nothing he could do.

Matt was meditating for the first time in months when he heard the sound of the door unlocking. He opened his eyes to see who it was that was about to see him. When he saw who it was he smiled.

"Hello Lenalee. How are you this fine day."  
>"Tell me where he is" said Lenalee her voice sounding irritated.<p>

"Tell you where who is" asked Matt playing dumb.

"You know damn well who I'm talking about! Tell me where Allen is!"

"Oh yes, Allen Walker. To be honest, I haven't seen him since he crossed through the ark gate."

"You're lying" said Lenalee as tears began to form in her eyes. "You have to know where he is."

"Look, he refused to have us help him control his Noah. He left pretty much immediately after arriving on the ark. No one has been able to find him. Believe me, the Earl has his akuma looking for him, if they were to have found Allen we would have known by now. It looks like Allen doesn't want to be found. I'm sorry." Matt took no pleasure in telling her that. He wanted to be friends but he knew that there was no way. Not as long as they were enemies.

"Fine, but so help me if I find out you're lying, I'll hunt you down." Lenalee began to walk away.

"Don't worry Lenalee, if I find him I'll let you know." Lenalee stopped in her tracks and turned around.

"Why would you do that" she asked, confused by what he had just said.

"Because, I want to be friends with at least you and Allen, so I am willing to do that much." There was a short pause then he spoke again. "Well that and you will owe me one if I help you."

"But you're our prisoner, how will you be able to find him?"

"These seals won't hold me forever. Now if I were you I would leave before someone sees you talking to me." Lenalee nodded and left the room, locking it behind her. Matt smiled and went back to meditating.

**Thanks for reading. As always please review. Chapter 16 coming soon!**


	16. Escape from the Order

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own -man**

Over the next two weeks, Matt was put through excruciating experiments, pushing his body to its very limits. If it wasn't for his regenerative abilities, Matt would've died days ago. This time, Matt was strapped to a table with giant tesla coils on either end. As Matt waited for the next 'experiment' to begin, Rouvelier approached him with a smug grin on his face.

"So Matt, how are you enjoying our stay with us?"

Matt laughed a little, "I've been having the time of my life here" Matt said sarcastically. "You guys sure know how to treat a guest."

"Then you should enjoy our next experiment. We tend to find it quite shocking."

"Oh the puns" said Matt faking a pained look on his face. "The puns are what will kill me not your silly experiments."

Rouvelier glared at Matt as he turned to walk away. Matt then began to laugh.

"I doubt it, these chains will not hold me forever" Matt said in a serious tone despite the laughing. Rouvelier turned around.

"Those seals were made to restrict the Noah within you, you won't be able to do anything" Rouvelier said confidently.

"But what if my Noah was already partially sealed away before you actually placed the seals? If I were to say release my Noah wouldn't it be possible in theory to break through" asked Matt. Rouvelier took it as a joke.

"Well perhaps in theory but no Noah has ever been able to even partly seal the Noah within them, the bookmen hold the records to prove it."

"The bookmen do not know everything" Matt said with a serious tone. With that Rouvelier turned around and looked at one of the scientists.

"Begin the experiment." The scientist nodded and pulled a lever. The tesla coils bagan to surge to life. After a moment the scientist pulled another lever and electricity began shooting out, hitting Matt. Matt then felt the pain, he couldn't yell but he felt every inch of his body in a pain unlike anything he had felt before. The experiment went on for on 5 minutes and when they finally turned it off Matt's body had smoke rising from the body. Rouvelier smiled, believing that the Noah was now dead. But then he heard laughter, it started as a soft laugh then grew to a full out hysterical laughter. Matt was still alive and this infuriated Rouvelier.

"Put him back in his cell. We're done for the day" said Rouvelier as he stormed out of the room. A few guards dragged Matt back to his cell. He was still laughing when they locked him in his cell. When the door closed Matt finally stopped. Matt then closed his eyes and began to meditate.

* * *

><p>Matt walked through the city that was his mind. Usually it was sunny, but today was a rare day where it was raining. Matt approached the gate to the fortress that held Majnun. He took a deep breath and opened the door. Matt approached Majnun's cell and was greeted by a sinister laugh.<p>

"Well, well, well" the voice said. "Look who's finally paying me a visit after all this time. Tell me Matt, why have you come here?"

"Majnun, I've come to give you an offer. An offer that would allow you to leave this prison every once in a while."

There was a short pause before Majnun spoke. "I'm listening."

"I'm tired of this, I need your power."

"Is that so? And you seemed so content locking me up here 2 years ago. What's wrong boy? Why do you need my power so suddenly? Don't tell me that the torture is getting to you?" Matt realized that Majnun was mocking him.

"That's hardly the problem; I do not fear pain, so it does not bother me. I am just tired of being held in this damn prison" Majnun laughed a little and Matt glared at him. "I am willing you let you out if you give me full control of you powers and not take over my mind and have my family try to kill me." There was another short pause. "Well Majnun do we have a deal?"

* * *

><p>A guard approached the cell with a plate of food scraps. He unlocked the door and when he walked in he dropped the plate in horror. He saw a black aura encircling Matt. His hair had grown out and his eyes had changed to red with the white part turned black. What was more distressing was that the seals across his body were burning up. Matt stood up ripping the chains that bound him off. The guard immediately ran out of the room and hit an alarm. The alarm went through the entire heard the alarm and heard the guard's voice through the intercom.<p>

"Attention! The Noah of Madness has freed himself! I repeat, the Noah of Madness is-." Everyone listened for a response. Then they heard a voice they did not expect.

"I would like to thank the Black Order for their hospitality. However, I must return home now, it was a pleasure" said Matt, then the intercom cut off.

Matt looked at the dead guard on the ground with 5 parallel cut marks piercing his chest. Matt looked at his hands.

"Claws huh? So this is what my awakened form looks like." Matt then began to search for an exit. After a few minutes, Matt became impatient and created a way out by blowing a hole through a wall. As Matt stepped out he noticed that the Black Order's HQ was a large cathedral in the middle of a forest. Then he saw several exorcists, along with Rouvelier surround him.

"Give up Noah, you're surrounded" said Rouvelier.

"Unlikely" Matt said calmly, and then two giant arms appeared on Matt's back, next to his demon wings. The two arms swung out knocking over several exorcists while the rest dodged. Matt then charged at Rouvelier.

"Well what are you waiting for kill him" ordered Rouvelier, taking a step back.

Matt began to dodge and weave the exorcists' attacks as they swarmed around him. In a fluent motion Matt managed to both dodge and attack at nearly the same time. Before too long there was a trail of bodies. Many exorcists took a few steps back in fear while a second wave of only 3 exorcists came in in 3 different directions. The first exorcist in front of him took a swing at him, Matt side-stepped out of the way, pushing the weapon, then elbowing the exorcist in the jaw; breaking it. At the same time the second exorcist came in for an attack. Matt grabbed the handle of the exorcist's weapon and pushed it back into the head of the exorcist. Then he stabbed him in the chest. The third exorcist came in right behind the now dead exorcist. Matt took the corpse and threw it at him. The exorcist ducked out of the way but Matt kicked him in the side of the head sending him skipping across the ground before coming to a stop. Matt then turned to face Rouvelier, now terrified, because Matt had just taken out 10 exorcists with little ease. In the blink of an eye Matt was standing in front of him.

"Well it doesn't look like I'm surrounded anymore Rouvelier, so I think I'll take my leave, and you might want to add a few more to the amount of exorcists that I have killed." Matt began to walk past the horror-struck Rouvelier. "Oh and if you're wondering why I'm not killing you now" Matt paused, "Actually, I don't know why I'm not killing you now. By all rights I should, but I think I have enough blood on my hands for one day. Just be warned if I ever see you again, even if I'm somehow your ally, I will kill you on the spot." Matt began to walk away again, an ark gate opened up right in front of him. As he was about to step in he turned to see Lenalee in the distance. He simply smiled and nodded at her and walked into the gate which closed behind him.

* * *

><p>Matt reached the ark where several Noah were waiting for him. When they saw him they were horrified to see the horrible condition he was in. But what horrified them the most was that he was in his awakened form. Matt looked at everyone and smiled.<p>

"I'm finally home" said Matt in relief as he reverted back to his Noah form, then collapsed.

**I hope you enjoyed reading. As always please review, I really appreciate it. Chapter 17 coming soon!**

**Author's Note:**** I feel I should clarify, Matt wasn't conscious when he first awakened, Majnun had control of his body at the time, so this would be the first time he saw his awakened form.**


	17. A new assignment

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt awoke in his bed, much to his surprise. He leaned up and noticed that something had caught his eye. He turned to see what it was and to his surprise he saw Road, Tyki, and Sheril sitting in his room. Sheril was sleeping in an armchair, Tyki was sitting on the couch reading a book as usual, and Road was sitting on the floor playing with a stuffed teddy bear. Road was the first to notice that Matt was awake. She shot up and ran over to Matt, which caused Tyki to take notice.

"Hey Matt how are you feeling" Road asked as she sat on Matt's bed.

"A little sore but other than that I'm fine" Matt said with a smile.

"Hey Matt" Tyki said standing up and walking towards Matt. "It's good to hear you're well. We didn't know what to think when you came through the gate."

"Yeah" Matt scratched the back of his head, "I wasn't sure how to explain that to you."

"Well try."

"I may have made a deal with Majnun and now I may be able to use his abilities as well as mine without fear of losing my mind to him."

"And you trust him" Tyki asked in disbelief.

"I agree with Tyki, Matt" said Road. "When I met Majnun he didn't seem so keen on sharing your mind with you."

"I would agree, however, I think I can handle him this time around" Matt said with confidence.

Road gave a worried look but then gave Matt a smile. "Well if you think you can handle it then I guess we will just have to trust you." Tyki nodded in agreement.

Matt went to stand up; when he did he noticed that his entire hands and arms had been rewrapped with bandages.

"Why are my hands and arms all bandaged up" Matt asked.

"They were pretty badly burned. What exactly did they do to you" Road asked.

"Well they insisted that they were trying to find a way to permanently kill the Noah. But if you were to ask me, I believe they just wanted to torture and kill me."

"That's horrible" Road said with a frown.

"Well it wasn't too bad" said Matt trying to make Road worry less. "It wasn't anything that I couldn't handle."

"Well then I guess we shouldn't worry about you anymore" Road said with a grin.

"No, no, I appreciate the fact that you all worried about me. By the way, Why is Sheril here?"

"Well he was here because of me, not to say that he wasn't worried about you, after all we are family" said Road. Matt simply patted her on the head, then stood up. "By the way Matt, are you gonna keep your hair long like you promised?" Matt felt the hair behind his back, he had completely forgotten that his hair grew.

"This time I may have to break my promise Road. I really liked my hair short." Road pouted at Matt when he said that. "But tell you what I will keep another promise and we can go anywhere you want to go today." Road's eyes seemed to sparkle when he said that.

"Really?"

"Not today" said another voice coming from the doorway. Everyone, except Sheril looked over to see that the Millennium Earl was standing in the doorway.

"Hello Lord Millennium" said Matt

"Well hello my child, you gave us quite the scare the last few weeks."

"So I've been told."

"Anyways I came here to see if you were better. Now that I know you are I have a mission for you."

"Wait what?" Matt said, a little surprised, but he had to admit to himself that he did see it coming.

"Indeed. I need you to go to Egypt. It appears that there may be some innocence located in one of the Great Pyramids of Giza, and I want you to go and destroy it."

"Lord Millennium, if I may say so, you've been working me like a horse recently. Well not recently because I was captured, but you get the idea. Anyways what I'm trying to say is that I'm not exactly enjoying the workload you're giving me."

"Now, now Matt. Things have begun to speed up, I need everyone to pull their weight here. And you are the one who says he doesn't need to sleep."

"That's because I don't have to. You know that!"

"Yes, yes. Now Matt I promise you'll get a vacation after this assignment."

"Very well" Matt said reluctantly. "But can I take Road with me?"

"Sure why not. You are to leave immediately." With that said the Earl left the room. Matt turned to Road.

"Road go get ready we leave in 15 minutes."

"Ok Matt" Road leapt of the bed and skipped out of the room.

"Hey Tyki can you take Sheril with you, it doesn't look like he'll be waking for a while."

"Sure thing Matt, you two have fun" Tyki said picking up Sheril.

"I doubt we'll have too much trouble" said Matt with a grin. Tyki nodded and left the room.

Matt took a quick shower mainly to calm him down, but also because he remembered that he didn't bathe when he held prisoner. Matt then took a razor and cut his hair back to its original short length. Matt decided to wear what he was wearing when he was being held prisoner. As well he pulled out a new black cloak because his old one was taken by the exorcists, which really upset Matt. The stark contrast between the black cloak, the white clothes and his gray skin made Matt's face stand out more than when he usually wore his tux which Matt found odd when he looked into the mirror.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Reviews are appreciated. Chapter 18 coming soon! **


	18. Battle at the Pyramids

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Road and Matt arrived at the outskirts out Cairo. Not far in the distance they could see the Great Pyramids of Giza looming in the distance.

"They must be very tall to be able to see them from this distance" Matt said looking at the pyramids in the horizon.

"Well yeah. Otherwise they wouldn't be called the 'Great Pyramids' now would they" said Road. Matt simply laughed.

"Once again Road you're right. Now let's get this over with, I want to go explore the city." The two began to walk into the desert.

* * *

><p>After a short walk they finally reached the pyramids. Matt and Road stood on top of a large sand dune looking over the pyramids. They saw what looked like an excavation group down by the entrance to the center pyramid.<p>

"How is we are never first to the innocence locations" Matt complained.

"I don't know, but it works out for us. After all if they find the innocence all we have to do is kill them and destroy it."

"Right, then let's get this party started." There was a short pause and Road looked at Matt with a confused look.

"Everything all right Matt? "

Matt looked up with Road. "Yeah…I've never tried to manipulate sand before, so I'm having trouble controlling it." Matt gave a little laugh and Road just sighed.

"You're kidding right?"

"Why would I? I've never had to fight in a desert, and I've never used sand as a weapon before, so tell me how would I know how to use it?"

"Oh I don't know. Maybe because your power is to manipulate the elements" argued Road.

"Hey, I can only manipulate the earth."

"Then you can manipulate sand."

"Alright, geez calm down Road. I'll try again." Matt was visibly concentrating. Road watched in interest, then noticed Matt's expression change.

"There, I think I've got it" Matt said, and a giant pillar of sand shot out of the ground.

"See was it really that hard?"

"I suppose not, but it certainly was a pain."

"Right" Road rolled her eyes. "So are we ready yet?"

"Yeah, let's go." With that the two began to walk down the sand dune.

* * *

><p>"Hurry up" yelled a finder to the rest of the group there. "We need to hurry up before nay akuma or Noah shows up."<p>

"Sir, I think it might be too late" said another finder pointing behind them. The finder turned around to see two figures walking down a sand dune.

"Damn it, go call the exorcists over here we need them." A finder ran off towards the pyramid. A few moments later, 2 exorcists, one of them being Lenalee approached the finder.

"What's wrong" Lenalee asked.

"Look over there" the finder said pointing to the two people walking towards them. Lenalee instantly recognized the two figures approaching them.

"Those are Noah the small one is Road, the taller one is Matt.

"How are we going to handle this" asked the finder, a little nervous after just finding out that they were Noah.

"I'm not sure; both of these Noah are known for being able to take on multiple exorcists at once."

"But if there are only two exorcists, how will we be able to fight them off?"

"Again, I'm not sure. Right now you just need to worry about finding the innocence, let us worry about the Noah.

"Very well, you two stay safe" said the finder as he left the two exorcists to face the Noah.

"Are you ready Claire" asked Lenalee as she activated her dark boots.

"I am" said Claire unsheathing a large claymore that she was carrying on her back. "Who do you want to take?"

"I'll fight Matt, you can fight Road. Just be careful, Road is very dangerous."

"I'm sure I can take her" Claire said confidently as she charged at Road. Lenalee went to stop her from attacking so recklessly but realized that there was no point and she ran towards Matt. Using her speed, Lenalee reached Matt in a matter of seconds. She jumped into the air and began to swing her leg at Matt. However instead of making contact with Matt, a column of sand shot out of the ground absorbing her kick. Matt looked up at Lenalee and grinned.

"Why hello Lenalee it's good to see you again so soon" said Matt as a second column of sand shot out from the ground and curved towards Lenalee who effortlessly dodged.

"I thought you said you wanted to be friends. And what ever happened to wanting to find Allen" said Lenalee as she took another kick at Matt, which was once again blocked by sand.

"It's true I would want to be friends however right now that isn't possible. And I told you that if I find him I'll let you know, that is if you survive of course." Matt then lunged at her turning his arm into a sword and slashing at her. Lenalee leaped into the air and then shot back down. Matt looked up to see Lenalee's next attack. He leapt out of the way just as Lenalee made contact with the ground causing a cloud of sand rise into the air.

Matt couldn't see a thing. Then Matt sensed something behind him. He turned and braced for impact. He was right. Lenalee kicked Matt head on sending Matt flying backwards. Matt recovered almost immediately sending two pillars of sand at Lenalee in an attempt to crush her. She leapt into the air.

"Not this time" Matt said and as the two pillars collided, two more sprung out aimed right at her. One of the pillars hit her, while the second curved around and struck her from the side forcing her into the ground. Lenalee was slow to get up but she still had plenty of strength left.

"Hey Lenalee, I have a new trick that I would like to show you." Lenalee looked confused at what Matt was saying. Then she noticed the sand around him begin to rise in several mounds. She watched as they took a human form and eventually looking identiacal to Matt.

"What's going on here?"

"I just figured I'd try this out, see if my clones can hold up against a strong exorcist" Matt said pointing at her. The 3 clones then charged at her. Despite attacking at the same time, Lenalee managed to weave her way through the three clones, destroying each with just a single kick. Matt looked disappointed at his now destroyed clones.

"I guess they can't hold up well in the sand, man this is becoming a pain." Then he saw Lenalee attacking him from the side. He launched a pillar of sand at her which made contact, but not before she had kicked Matt. The two were sent flying in opposite directions.

As Matt stood up he looked over to Road. He was surprised to see that she was directly fighting the other exorcist. Matt became a little irritated.

"Road, stop playing with your opponent and finish her off" yelled Matt. Road looked at Matt.

"But that's what you're doing, so it's not fair that only you get to play around" Road protested.

"Well one of us has to get into the pyramid and destroy the innocence."

"And it has to be me?"

"Just go and play with the finders, they'll give you less trouble."

Road sighed, a little upset, "Fine have it your way." Road threw several candles at the exorcist distracting her, and Road ran to the pyramid.

"Oh no you don't" yelled Claire but a column of sand blocked her path.

"Sorry, but it looks like I'm your opponent now" said Matt with a smile.

"Fine I'll just kill you first and she swung her sword at Matt, who easily evaded the attack. Just then Lenalee appeared behind Matt, and before he could even react Lenalee kicked Matt in the back, sending him forward. Lenalee, using her superior speed, ran in front of Matt, kicked him in the stomach, sending him back to where he was , then once more in the back. This time though Matt was stopped by Claire's sword, which pierced completely through his chest.

"Damn it, sand makes terrible armor" Matt grumbled to himself as the sand that covered his body, revealed itself and crumbled away. "I guess I have no choice" Matt said to himself.

"What are you talking about? You're about to die Noah" Claire said triumphantly.

"But I suppose Majnun will appreciate it" Matt grinned, ignoring the exorcist. Claire was still confused by what Matt was talking about, and then she saw the black aura pouring out of his wound. She tried to pull her sword out but to her surprise it wouldn't budge. Lenalee recognized what was going on.

"Claire, get out of there you're in danger" Lenalee screamed. Claire, realizing that she was in danger let go of her sword and tried to flee, but a long, clawed hand grabbed her arm before she could get away.

"Too late" said Matt. Claire looked up and nearly screamed at Matt's appearance. Lenalee tried to help but one of Matt's aura arms grabbed her and threw her into the pyramid. Before she could get up the arm extended and forced Lenalee down. There was nothing she could do now but watch.

Matt tossed Claire aside and pulled out the claymore. He tossed to the feet of Claire and gave her an evil smile.

"I'm giving you a chance to fight for your life. It would be no fun if I just killed you right away" said Matt. Claire glared at him and grabbed her sword and charged at him screaming. She swung her sword at Matt. The sword passed straight through Matt, a light smoke poured from the wound, then he his entire body turned to smoke. A large gust of wind came over the desert and the smoke vanished in the wind. Claire was bewildered at what she had just witnessed.

"Would you like me to explain what happened to you" Matt whispered into her ear. Claire then tried to hit Matt with her sword's handle but she felt no contact in her swing.

"Tsk, tsk" said Matt's voice echoing around Claire who continued to search for him. "You are quite rude you know that? I guess I'll put an end to this. What do you say to that?"

Before Claire could blink Matt appeared in front of her. Then she felt pain in her chest. She looked down to she Matt's long claws pierced into her chest. She looked up at Matt's face.

"You are dying an honorable death exorcist, but you should have known that this was inevitable" Matt said with a straight face. Claire didn't respond, then life left her eyes and her body became limp. Matt gently placed the exorcist on the ground and turned to face Lenalee. The aura arm had let go of her when he turned to smoke, but she still watched.

"Did you not like her" Matt asked as he walked up to her. "Normally, allies would come to the other's aid when in trouble. But you just stood there; why?"

"I-I don't know" Lenalee said stunned.

"Well, you better get your act together, otherwise you'll be dead as well" said Matt then he vanished. Lenalee's eyes widened to see Matt standing in front of her, his arm pulling back ready to attack. As Matt thrusts his arm at her, Lenalee spins around Matt Having Matt's hand break some of the pyramid sandstone. As she finished spinning around him she kicked Matt into the sandstone causing a massive indention surrounding Matt's body. She then saw Matt's body crack and cave in. Lenalee realized that what she had kicked was not Matt but a clone. She turned around to see Matt standing behind her. She felt a quick pain in her gut, she looked down only to see Matt's normal fist punching her. She coughed a little, losing her breath and passed out. Matt let her fall down several blocks of sandstone before she hit the ground.

* * *

><p>Matt reverted to his normal Noah form and leapt to the ground. He walked over to the entrance only to see Road walking out.<p>

"I assume you took care of everything" asked Matt.

"Of course I did. And you were right Matt, playing with those finders were a lot of fun" said Road with a smile.

"I think this might be the first time you've ever said I was right" Matt laughed.

"So can we go check out Cairo before we return to the ark" Road asked eagerly.

"Of course Road, I told you we would." The two began to walk back toward Cairo. When they reached the sand dune that they stood on before the battle Matt turned around. He was shocked to see several akuma entering the pyramid. Matt stood there confused.

"Hey Matt are you coming or what" asked Road. Matt turned around and nodded.

"Sorry about that, I just wanted to see the pyramids up close one last time" said Matt with a smile and caught up with Road. Matt chose not to worry about what he saw, but he knew deep down that something was wrong.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter because I really enjoyed writing this one. As always please review. Chapter 19 coming soon!**


	19. Unexpected discovery

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man**

Matt spent the rest of the day traveling through the streets of Cairo. It was extremely uneventful, and Matt was extremely bored. However he knew Road was having a good time and he knew not to say anything. Eventually they reached a major bazaar. As Road was looking through the many street venders Matt noticed someone that looked somewhat familiar walk by.

"Hey Road, I'll be right back I'm going to check something out" said Matt pointing in the direction the person went.

"Huh? Oh sure go ahead, I'll be here for a bit" said Road as she stared intently at what the vender had to sell. Matt began to follow the hooded person through the bazaar. Eventually the person turned into an alleyway.

"You know there are a lot of people looking for you right now" said Matt, who knew who he was talking to. "But you already know that don't you, Allen Walker. " The person turned around to, showing his face. Matt could barely see his white hair, but it was his scar that gave him away.

"I told you Noah, I'm not going to join you" Allen said, a serious look came over his face.

"I know I was there" Matt said as he approached Allen. "But even so, you realize that you're killing yourself by trying to resist the 14th right?"

"Everyone keeps saying that but I won't let the 14th take over. Now what do you want if you're not here to try here to take me back?" Matt was about to speak when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Hey Matt I got some things we can go home if you want" said Road, she had noticed Matt enter the alley while she was shopping but had ignored it until she had finished. Road looked at Matt, then at the person in the alley. She stared at Allen for a moment. There was an awkward pause. Then Road smiled with joy.

"Allen" Road said happily as she ran and hugged Allen, then kissed him. Allen just stood there, frozen. Matt sighed and walked up to Road, grabbing her by the collar, and pulling her away from Allen.

"Sorry about that, I forgot that Road has a thing for you" said Matt who was a little irritated by Road's behavior.

"Come on Matt let me go! I wanna be with Allen" Road pouted.

"Not a chance" said Matt immediately as Road continued to struggle. Allen just stood there watching the two argue then began to take steps backwards.

"No I want to be near Allen who knows when I'll see him again" said Road. She then materialized a single candle and stabbed Matt in the arm that was holding her. Matt released Road out of pain as he clutched his arm.

"There, now where was I Allen" said Road as she turned back to where Allen was. She blinked a few times as she saw Allen running away. "Hey Allen wait up" said Road as she ran off after him.

Matt ripped the candle out of his arm and threw it to the ground. "Man this is becoming more stress than its worth" Matt muttered to himself and took off after Road and Allen. The chase made it to the roof tops of the surrounding buildings. Eventually, Allen gave up on running and turned to face the Noah chasing him. He activated his innocence and prepared for battle. Road was the first to reach him. Allen, who was expecting her to attack him was knocked to the ground when Road tackled him. Matt was the second to arrive.

"NO! I want to spend time with Allen" whined Road as she threw several candles at Matt. Matt took a candle straight to the head causing him to fall to the ground on his back.

"Road why would you do that" asked Road, not understanding why she would attack her comrade.

"Relax, he'll be fine" Road said as Matt's body hit the ground and shattered into pieces.

"Wait, what just happened" Allen asked, shocked to see the rubble that was Matt.

"That wasn't Matt silly, that was a clone that he made" explained Road who was still had her arms around Allen. "Do you honestly think that Matt would allow such an injury to happen so easily?" Allen simply shrugged, he had no idea.

"Short answer is no" said a familiar voice coming from behind them. Then a stone hand wrapped itself around Road pulling her away from Allen, much to her protest. Allen turned around to see Matt standing behind them.

"When did you" Allen asked in total confusion.

"Get in front of you" Matt finished Allen's question. "About the time you turned out of the alleyway."

"But how?"

"Because I'm faster than you, that and my illusions* allowed me to move freely without you or Road noticing me."

"Illusions?"

"Yeah, the same thing I used on you two years ago when I attacked your old headquarters. Speaking of which, how's that injury holding up?"

"Fine" said Allen grabbing at chest. "I heal pretty fast so the injury was completely healed after three days. But it did leave a scar." Matt laughed a little which annoyed him. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing really, it's just when I attacked you with that attack, I was unconscious for three days."

"I don't see why that's so funny" said Allen.

"It's not really, I find it ironic, or something like that" said Matt.

"Hey are you gonna let me out" yelled Road.

"Nope, not until we're done here" said Matt, Road groaned after he said this.

"Hey, so what exactly are you doing down here anyways" Matt asked, now turning his attention back to Allen.

"I'm just wandering around right now, trying to keep away from anyone I care about out of harm's way."

"From yourself" Matt said realizing that that's what Allen was implying.

"I am not going to hurt my friends just because I am the host of the 14th."

"Do you even realize what you're saying" asked Matt. "I've met your Lenalee recently when the Order captured me, and she snuck into my prison to ask me if I knew where you were."

"Hold on a second, the Order captured you?"

"That story is for a different time" said Matt, trying to avoid the topic that he himself brought up. "What I'm trying to say is that your friends are being hurt just from you going missing. I think it's time you give them some closure and decide whose side you're on."

"I won't join you" yelled Allen, "and I can't go back to the Order."

"Very well, it was good seeing you again Allen. Oh and don't worry I won't let the Earl know where you are hiding, and I'm sure Road won't either" said Matt looking to the still struggling Road.

"I would appreciate that" said Allen, but there was distrust in his voice.

"You don't trust me do you?"

"Why should I?"

"You shouldn't. I am just asking you to." Allen didn't respond to what Matt said. After a moment Matt turned to Road. "Come on Road, we're leaving." Matt then released the hand that was holding Road. She brushed off her skirt and opened one of her doors. Road waved by to Allen who didn't wave back, but she didn't seem to mind. Road then entered the door and Matt followed after her. Before fully entering the door Matt turned around to Allen and gave him a warning.

"Eventually, those who are searching for you will find you, and if you don't choose a side by then, the fallout will be devastating."

***The "Illusions" ability is the same as the madness ability that was used in chapter 8 and is referenced as the "madness" ability in chapter 9. I will use both terms, I just wanted to clarify that they were the same thing.**

**Thank you for readying. Please review. Chapter 20 coming soon!**


	20. Dreams or visions?

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

"Road, promise me you won't tell the Earl, or any other Noah that we met Allen today" said Matt as they returned to the ark.

"How come Matt? The Earl wants to find him" said Road, a little confused. "It would make sense to tell him."

"He will be found eventually on his own, no matter how hard he tries he will be found" said Matt with a serious tone. "And besides, I want to see how things play out."

"What are you planning" Road asked a bit suspicious of Matt.

"Nothing, I'm just curious to see how this will all turn out."

"So what are gonna do now" asked Road.

"You can do whatever you like. I am going to sleep."

"Wait, what? You're going to sleep? But you never sleep."

"That doesn't mean I can't" said Matt, "I just feel very tired for some reason." Matt then waved to Road and walked away.

* * *

><p>Matt entered his room and got ready to sleep. Once he lay down and closed his eyes it did not take long before he fell asleep.<p>

* * *

><p>Matt opened his eyes to see he was outside. It was pouring rain which irritated him to no end. Then he heard a voice.<p>

"Matt" yelled a voice, he couldn't figure out who it was, the voice yelled his name again, this time it was much clearer to understand. "Matt you need to get up now!"

Matt sat up but noticed something was wrong he looked to his left arm and saw that it was missing.

"What the hell" Matt asked to himself as he looked around. He saw that he was in the middle of a large crater. He then saw the person who was yelling at him. "Tyki what the hell is going on?"

"What are you talking about Matt? It's an all-out war here, we need you to get up and fight already" said Tyki in a calm voice, but Matt could tell that this was a serious situation.

"I don't understand why is there a battle? Why is my arm missing" asked Matt in a state of total confusion.

"You must have hit your head pretty hard" said Tyki extending his arm to help Matt up, who accepted the offer and grabbed his hand. "However, there is no time to explain as for your arm its right over there" Tyki pointed to the edge of the crater. "Now go and reattach it and get back into the battle." Tyki then jump out of the crater. Matt got up and grabbed his arm. He placed his lost limb on his arm and the wound somehow healed. Matt didn't seem to worry about. He then looked up to see several akuma jump over the crater. Matt raised himself out of the ground to see a massive battle. Fire was everywhere as well as there were bodies of finders and exorcists scattered across the ground. He then heard several explosions, Matt turned to where the explosions came from to see several exorcists fighting off akuma. Matt had absolutely no idea what he was going to do but a voice that came from behind him answered his thought.

"So, you're still alive from those attacks? I guess I'll be the one who will finish you off." Matt turned around to see Kanda standing there with two swords in his hands.

"How many times do I have to kill you" Matt said to himself and he transformed into his awakened form. "Prepare yourself exorcist, I will not hold back against you."

"So you're finally going to fight us seriously" Kanda said in a serious tone, "that's good, it would be a shame if you were to be killed so easily." He then lunged at Matt.

Kanda swung his first sword down at Matt who evaded the attack by stepping to the right. Before Matt could counter Kanda's second sword swung at him, which Matt ducked out of the way. Matt seeing a small opening in Kanda's attack thrusts his claw at Kanda but in the blink of an eye Kanda dodged and managed slash Matt's right shoulder. Matt took several jumps away from Kanda. He could feel the wound already healing, but that didn't stop Matt from feeling the pain.

_If I can just touch his forehead I can end this and look for the other Noah,_ Matt thought to himself, and then charged at Kanda. As he charged at Kanda, Matt noticed something off about Kanda.

"Third illusion Sangenskiki" said Kanda and tattoo's formed under his eyes.

"Whatever you are planning I won't allow you to pull it off" yelled Matt as he took a swing at Kanda. Kanda vanished in a blink if an eye. Instinctively, Matt turned around to see Kanda behind him. As the sword made contact Matt vanished. Kanda, not expecting it fell over from his attack. As Kanda was standing up Matt appeared in front of him, and faster than he could react Matt grabbed his face.

"It's time I end this" said Matt, "Destroy!" Kanda's body fell limp and Matt threw the body aside.

* * *

><p>Matt blinked and the next thing he knew he was fighting alongside Road near the edge of a cliff. This time however he did not recognize their opponent. Matt saw one of their opponents appear behind Road.<p>

"Road watch out" yelled Matt as he rushed to intercept their foe. Road turned around when Matt yelled to see the enemy turn it's arm into a sword and thrust it at Road. Road closed her eyes, knowing she could not evade the attack. Then she felt something hit her face. She opened her eyes to see Matt standing in the way of the attack, with a blade sticking out of his back in the location of his heart.

"Matt, would you do that" Road asked in horror.

"That's stupid Road because you're my family. You're all that I have left now, and I'll be damned to see you die!" Matt then used his claws to rip the head off the person. Matt stumbled forward as the blade that pierced him fell out. Road grabbed him before he could fall.

"I'll be alright Road, but this fight isn't over." As he said that several figures that looked identical to who they just fought appeared out of the shadows.

"Road, do me a favor" Matt said quietly.

"What is it Matt" said Road preparing for battle.

"At the first chance run, I'll hold them off." Road starred at Matt perplexed.

"What are you talking about Matt? I'm not going to leave you here to die!"

"Yes you will" Matt yelled, "If you're not willing to then I'll force you to leave!" A stone hand grabbed Road and threw her past the approaching enemy. The enemy turned around as if to attack her but a giant fissure broke though the ground cutting them off.

"Sorry, but I'm your opponent not her" said Matt. They turned around and attacked Matt, every one of them turned their arms into weapons. Matt weaved in and out of their attacks taking out many of the incoming attackers. However Matt then felt several spikes pierce several parts of his chest and shoulders. Matt looked over to where Road was now standing.

"I'm sorry" said Matt to himself as he slammed his foot to the ground causing the entire cliff up to the fissure to collapse. Road read Matt's lips and watched in horror as the Matt disappeared from sight as the cliff collapsed. Road screamed and ran to the edge of the new cliff side.

Matt looked down to see where he would land. Realizing that it was the ocean he began to laugh.

"Damn it, to think I would go out like this" said Matt as he closed his eyes and embraced his fate.

* * *

><p>Matt's eyes shot open. He was breathing heavily as he began to regain his bearings on reality. As he breathed heavily he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked over and saw Road standing next to his bed.<p>

"Road, what are you doing here" Matt asked after composing himself.

"I'm here to check on you" Road said with a smile.

"But why?"

"I'm the dreams of Noah, I could tell that your dreams were giving you trouble so I came here to see if I could calm them down. I had really only just arrived before you woke up."

"I see, well thanks for coming then."

"Matt do you want to talk about what you dreamt about?"

"I'd rather not Road, I don't remember any of it really" Matt lied. He remembered every bit of that dream but there was no way he was going to tell anyone. Matt feared that that dream was much more than just a normal dream.

"Are you going to go back to sleep" asked Road accepting his response.

"No, I don't think I'm going to sleep again for a while. I think I like being awake more than sleeping." Said Matt as he got out of bed and began to get ready for the day.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. I've been thinking about some locations for the story to visit, I have the next location chosen but the rest is really just a blank as I write on a daily basis. If any of you have a suggestion of where I should go leave a review stating where or just leave me a PM. But enough of my ranting Chapter 21 coming soon!**


	21. Siberian battle part 1: Ambush

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just he OC**

"Great news everybody" said the Earl one morning during breakfast. It had been a few days since Matt and Road had returned from Egypt.

"What is it" asked Road as she played with her fork.

"The Black Order is transporting a large amount of innocence across Siberia. From what I my akuma following them tell me they are relatively unguarded given the amount of innocence they possess."

"Is that so" said Tyki, "and how much innocence are they carrying?"

"While I don't have an exact amount, it looks to be around 10 pieces of innocence."

"Ten pieces" said Sheril a little surprised at the amount. "Usually the Black Order doesn't transport so many at once, what's going on?"

"Apparently the exorcist general Cloud Nyne had collected several pieces in her journey and has been ordered by their headquarters to return the pieces of innocence." The Earl looked over the Noah and noticed Matt with his head on his arms. "Matt, are you sleeping?"

Matt lifted his head. "No my lord, I'm just tired that's all" said Matt with a yawn.

"Is everything all right" asked the Earl. "You've been tired ever since you returned from Egypt."

"I know. It's getting better though."

"So Matt do you have any questions about what is going on?"

"Yes. Is the general with those carrying the innocence?"

"No, she is not."

"Where are they heading?"

"South, towards the Asian branch."

"Ok, thanks, I'll get on it then." Matt stood up and began to walk away.

"Matt, I haven't said who were going."

"Yes, but I am always assigned to this stuff. And if my prediction is correct, Tyki and Road will be joining me."

There was a slight pause as the rest of the Noah looked at the Earl who simply smiled.

"You are correct Matt."

"Told ya so" said Matt as he left the room.

"Tyki, Road, go with him. And don't worry about the destruction of the innocence, just retrieve the innocence have it returned to the ark."

"Sure thing Lord Millennium" said Road as she and Tyki stood up. "But if I may ask, why?"

"I'm running a little experiment and I need innocence."

"Oh, ok then bye!" Road waved to the Earl and skipped out of the room with Tyki following behind her.

* * *

><p>The three Noah arrived in Siberia, every one of them was dressed for the cold weather. For the most part everyone wore the same usual clothes except they were much heavier. The only difference was with Matt who wore a black cloak with a hood. The cloak wrapped around his entire body and face leaving only his golden eyes visible.<p>

"Matt how long do you think this will take" Road asked shivering a little.  
>"Hopefully not very long, the gate was supposed to open near the convoy. All we need to do is wait for it, ambush them, claim the innocence and leave" said Matt.<p>

"Yeah, but how long will that take?"

"Not long" said Tyki answering for Matt, "it looks like they've already arrived." Matt and Road looked down the hill they were standing on and saw a long convoy of carriages running towards them.

"Yep, that would be them" said Matt as they stood there as the convoy approached.

* * *

><p>The lead carriage noticed the three Noah standing in there way and stopped the convoy in its tracks. As they did Kanda (who was there because under Tiedoll's orders) stepped out of the carriage.<p>

"What's going on? Why are we stopping" Kanda asked in an irritated voice.

"Sorry sir, but it looks like we have company" said the finder pointing at the Noah. Kanda looked over and grinned.

"That's fine we'll take care of them." As he said this 4 more exorcists came out of the other carriages.

As the Noah watched the exorcists prepare for battle Matt recognized Kanda.

"Damn it! How many times am I going to have to fight that one freaking exorcist" sad Matt.

"What are you talking about" asked Road.

"That's the same guy I fought at the Asian branch and at the old exorcist headquarters" Matt pointed out. Road took a better look.

"Hmm, yep that's him alright. So what are you going to do about it?"

"I think I'm going to kill him this time" Matt said with a sadistic grin.

"You sure" Road teased, "you haven't even beaten him in a fight."

"Things have changed since the last time we fought. This time I will win" Matt said confidently. "I trust that you two can handle the rest of the exorcists?"

"Sure thing" said Tyki.

Matt then created a large wall of stone. From the stone small spikes formed and shot out towards the exorcists. As the dust settled from the attack several horses were dead, along with several finders. The main attack then began. Matt rushed toward Kanda, turning his right arm into a sword and took a swipe at Kanda who easily blocked the attack. Matt jumped back to prepare for another attack.  
>"Kaichu Ichigen" said Kanda as he swung his sword. The underworld creatures flew at Matt who raised several stone walls to block them. Each wall exploded on contact causing the debris to fly towards Matt who raised his arms to block the debris. Kanda, taking advantage of his attack charged in after his attack and swung his sword at Matt. However, Matt grabbed Kanda's arm, spun in a circle and threw Kanda. Kanda landed on his feet but was surprised that Matt was able to grab him despite not being able to see clearly.<p>

At the same time, Tyki was fighting 2 exorcists. He wasn't trying very hard but he still managed to evade all of his opponents' attacks. Tyki then heard the sound of carriages coming from behind him. He turned to see several Black Order carriages pull in and 5 exorcists as well as several armed finders emerged from the carriages. Tyki, realizing that Matt was the closest to the reinforcements, called out to him.

"Matt watch out" yelled Tyki, "the Black Order sent more exorcists. It's an ambush!"

Matt, hearing what Tyki said turned his head to see that there were several exorcists heading towards him.

Kanda, realized that Matt had let his guard down rushed in for an attack.

Matt, realizing himself that he let his guard down turned back to Kanda who was already attacking him. Matt raised his arm to block the attack. There was a quick flash of light from Kanda's sword then Matt felt Kanda's foot kicking him in the gut, sending Matt rolling across the ground.

Matt kneeled on the ground, panting. He reached down to push himself up but he didn't feel the ground. Surprised, Matt looked at the ground. There was blood everywhere, Matt looked at where the blood was coming from, and his eyes widened in horror. He knelt there holding up the source of the blood. Matt stared at his arm, now missing his arm from the elbow down. After a moment Matt let out a scream.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As always please review. I've decided to break this battle into 2 parts. I have no idea if it's a good idea or not but I figured I would try. Anyways chapter 22 coming soon!**


	22. Siberian battle part 2:Power of Madness

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

His scream could be heard throughout the battlefield. A scream of shock, pain, and rage, all at once. It was the kind of scream that had everyone stops what they were doing and looks. Matt screamed at the top of his lungs. He had just lost his arm to Kanda in a blink of an eye. The ground began to shake violently. Massive spikes began to come out from the ground, and even more spikes came out of the main spikes. Each spike continued to branch out until there was almost an impassible forest of spikes. Many finders and an exorcist were killed by the spikes and were carried into the sky and covered by other spikes. Tyki and Road watched in horror as this happened, they had never seen Matt act like this before. After what felt like an eternity, Matt stopped screaming and stood up.

"You're…going…to pay for that" said Matt as he transformed into his awakened form. Kanda prepared himself activating his third illusion: Sangenshiki. Kanda noticed that Matt's body was pouring out the same dark aura that he saw when they first met. This caused Kanda to hesitate.

Across the valley, Tyki and Road met, after quickly dealing with the exorcists they were fighting. They saw the aura and knew that it was not normal.

"Tyki, what's happening" Road asked, concerned about Matt.

"I'm not entirely sure" said Tyki, equally as concerned.

* * *

><p>Inside Matt's mind everything was hectic. There was a massive thunderstorm going on that was destroying the city that had managed to rebuild over the last two years. Majnun approached Matt who was sitting in a dark alleyway.<p>

"Well, well. It looks like you're in a little trouble" mocked Majnun.

"I want him dead" Matt said coldly, "I want that exorcists dead."

"Then I shall give you the power to do so." Matt looked up in confusion.

"But I have already awakened, what more power can you give me?"

"I have given you more power 4 times throughout your life boy; I still have a little more to give you."

"Then give it to me" said Matt standing up.

"I should warn you Matt, if you gain this ability, you will be at the peak of you power, but you will also be at your most vulnerable state."

"I don't care, give me the power."

"Very well" said Majnun with a grin.

* * *

><p>Back outside of Matt's mind, Matt's aura began to encircle him to the point that he couldn't be seen. Kanda as well as the other exorcists, even Tyki and Road had no idea what was going on. After a moment the aura violently blew away. Everyone looked at Matt with curiosity about what had just happened. Matt had appeared to revert to his normal Noah form. The reinforcing exorcists believed that Matt had given up, or was too weak to continue in his awakened form and began to charge at Matt. Kanda continued to stare at Matt, he wanted to think that he reverted but there was something off. Matt's long hair, instead of turning black was blonde and his eyes were still red with the white of his eyes were still black. Then he saw Matt raise his arm up, and saw that he was looking at the attacking exorcists without moving his head.<p>

"Get out of there" Kanda yelled at the exorcists but then he heard Matt speak.

"Chains of Madness" said Matt. Suddenly black aura chains burst from the ground and wrapped themselves around the excorsists' arms, legs, and necks. Kanda watched as Matt turned towards the now trapped exorcists. Matt gave and evil smile.

"Crushing Madness" said Matt as he closed his hand into a fist. The chains around the exorcists sliced through their limbs killing all of the instantly. Matt then turned his attention to Kanda. "Now it's your turn, come at me with everything you've got."

Kanda rushed at Matt and swung his sword at Matt. Matt simply lifted his hand to block the attack. When Kanda's sword made contact with Matt's hand, it sounded like a loud crack of thunder. Kanda looked with widened eyes as he saw that his attack did absolutely nothing to Matt. Matt smiled and closed his hand on the sword, shattering it. Kanda then felt something pass through him. He looked down to see that a single black aura chain passed through him. Matt grabbed the chain and pulled it though Kanda, ripping away the flesh that was there. At the same time Kanda felt a strange sensation. It felt like his soul had been ripped from him, that he actually had been killed. The feeling was brief as the real sensation of pain shot through him. Matt then grabbed Kanda and easily picked him up, then threw him. Kanda left a small crater in the ground where he had landed. Kanda was slow to get up.

"What is this" Kanda asked Matt. He was not expecting to get an answer though.

"This is my ultimate form, Zettai-tekina Kyoki*" Matt said calmly, though you could still hear the murderous intent in his voice. "That ability you witnessed is called Kyoki no Kage**. My aura is spread out over a large area and can be used to attack anyone within its shadow. You also probably at some point felt death that is because I no longer need to touch someone in order to infect them with madness. But enough of this, I don't need to explain anything to you, because you will soon be dead" said Matt as he approached Kanda.

"Consume, Mugen" Kanda said to himself as Matt stood over him about to finish Kanda off. Matt didn't notice the ground behind him begin to shine and the fragments of Kanda's sword came back to him and reformed. Once the sword reformed Kanda kicked Matt backwards. Kanda then lunged at Matt, his sword completely reformed for this one last attack.

"What's this" said Matt in shock. Kanda swung at Matt making contact. A large cut mark could be seen going across Matt's entire body. Blood poured out of the wound and Matt began to fall to the ground. Then Matt heard Majnun speak to him.

"I told you that you would be at your most vulnerable in this form, you needed more time to recover from the last attack. You truly are foolish." Matt hit the ground and passed out, blood still pouring out of him. Kanda collapsed as well after the attack. Tyki and Road rushed over to Matt. Tyki lifted Matt up off the ground and a gate opened up and he entered to portal, Road followed him, carrying Matt's arm. Kanda watched as the Noah fled the area, and then slowly stood up. He looked around him to see that all the exorcists and most of the finders were dead. He then collected his sword fragments and sat down, waiting for help to arrive. He closed his eyes and began to meditate.

***** **Zettai-tekina Kyoki: Japanese for Absolute Madness**

****Kyoki no Kage: Japanese for Shadow of Madness (hmm, that sounds kinda familiar doesn't it?)**

**Well that's it for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. I'm curious to know, did the two part battle work for you or should I have just made 1 long chapter? I've been playing around with this idea for a while and this is my first attempt at a two part battle. I hope you like the names of his abilities, I spent several hours trying to figure out the right names. I'm a bit iffy about a few not every name can be gold. As always please review. Chapter 23 coming soon!**

**Also, I've put up a quick bio of my main character on my page. It's nothing really special, it just has some basic information about him. I will also put up his abilities in more detail as I reveal them, so it will be updated a few more times while I continue to develop Matt's ultimate form. Anyways I realize that I'm ranting here so I'll stop for today. Until next time :D**


	23. Midnight battle part 1: Arrival

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Tyki carried Matt through the gate. As he crossed through he looked at Matt and saw that his eyes were open.

"I didn't think you would wake up so fast" Tyki said with a smile.

"Yeah, me neither" said Matt. "Hey do you mind letting me go, I can walk on my own." Tyki shrugged and placed Matt on the ground. "Thank you" said Matt as he began to walk.

"Hey Matt, what happened back there" asked Road still clutching Matt's arm as if she was protecting it. "What was that form"

"That Road, was apparently my ultimate form" said Matt as he approached Road holing out his hand. Road realized what he wanted and handed over his arm. Matt then placed his lost arm back into place and held it as it healed itself. "Majnun called it the Zettai-tekina Kyoki form. I really don't know much about it yet; Majnun is still telling me all about this form."

"It does seem to be very powerful, but you did go down pretty easily" Tyki pointed out.

"That's because virtually all of my defensive abilities were converted to raw power" said Matt, having just found out himself. He looked at his arm and noticed that his arm had healed back on. However when he tried to move his hand he discovered that he couldn't. "What's going on" Matt asked.

"Let me look" Tyki said lifting Matt's arm up. "Can you feel anything?"

"No" Matt said calmly.

"Well it looks like even though your arm has healed, the nerves in your entire arm have not recovered yet. I'm no doctor but I would say you won't be able to move your arm for a few days."

"Well then, I guess I have a good reason to request a short vacation" Matt said with a smile.

"No fair" Road complained, "Why should you get a vacation?"

"Because, Road, you didn't lose your arm" said Matt. "But I'll tell you what, how about I cut your arm off. Then you'll be able to go on vacation because you can't move your arm." Matt was dripping with sarcasm at this point as he turned his working arm into a sword. "Hey Tyki give me hand, Road wants a vacation." Tyki grinned, playing along with Matt's little joke and grabbed Road's arm holding it out.

"No" screamed Road as she pulled her arm away. Matt began to laugh.

"Then no vacation for you then" said Matt.

"Your mean Matt. You too Tyki."

"Sorry Road, I couldn't help it" Tyki chuckled. Road glared at Tyki, who then stopped chuckling immediately.

"So Matt if you're going on a vacation, where will you go?"

"I have no idea, I'll probably just travel a bit. Hopefully I'll be able to avoid the war for the next few days." Just then the Earl walked into the room.

"Why hello my children" said the Earl as he walked towards them.

"Lord Millennium, just who I wanted to talk to" Matt said, turning to face him.

"I'm sure you do. But first we need to attend to your mission. I trust it was a success?"

"Unfortunately, there was no innocence my lord" said Tyki. Both the Matt and the Earl looked at Tyki with surprise. "Apparently it was an elaborate trap. When I 'talked' to one of the exorcists, they mentioned that they fed misinformation, in hopes to draw us out. However they misjudged. They only believed 1 or 2 Noah would appear not 3."

"I see. And I'm sure they weren't expecting Matt unleash his Zettai-tekina Kyoki form as well." The three Noah looked at the Earl.

"Wait, how do you know about that?"

"I had an akuma watch the battle, I saw everything that occurred. And I must say, I am quite interested in this new form."

"Well, as I told Road and Tyki, I myself don't know that much about it. Majnun hasn't told me everything yet" said Matt.

"Well that's a shame. Well then on to other business. I need you three to travel to Riga, the capital city of Latvia. There are rumors that there is some innocence hiding in the Dome Cathedral."

"Excuse me Lord Millennium" Matt interrupted.

"What is it Matt?"

"I've actually lost the movement in my left arm right now, I don't think I will be fit to fight right now."

"I'm aware of your situation Matt. However, I need your abilities in this fight."

"Why is that?"

"Simple, after what happened in Siberia, we can't be sure if the Black Order will send reinforcements. While Road and Tyki handle the innocence you will handle any reinforcing exorcists that happen to arrive."

"Hey I've been noticing that the Black Order has a lot more exorcists. You wouldn't happen to know why" asked Tyki, interrupting the Earl and Matt's conversation.

"Oh that. It appears they are becoming more and more efficient in finding accommodators, not to mention they have over 50 pieces of innocence, and nearly all of them are in use now."

"I see."

"And that is why we need to send the Noah into battle more and more often, we simply cannot allow the exorcists to retrieve any more innocence" said the Earl, directing his statement at Matt.

"I get it my lord" said Matt, a little embarrassed that he couldn't figure out something that obvious. "I'll make sure nothing gets in our way. Now if you don't mind I'm going to get ready. I'll see everyone in a few minutes." With that said Matt left to change his clothes.

* * *

><p>Tyki, Road, and Matt arrived in Riga around dusk. Despite it being largest city in Latvia they managed to find the Dome Cathedral just as night fell across the city.<p>

"So is this the place" asked Road staring up at the cathedral.

"I do believe so" said Tyki. "And we're in luck; it looks like we were the first to arrive."

"That's a first, are you sure that they haven't been here yet" asked Matt.

"Well even if they were here we should take a look. Matt can you keep watch" asked Tyki.

"Sure thing, I'll watch from the top of the tower" said Matt and a large pillar raised Matt to the top of the tower where Matt awkwardly sat down. The pillar then receded into the ground. At the same time Tyki and Road entered the cathedral.

* * *

><p>Matt watched the surrounding area for what felt like forever. Then he saw several figures moving towards the cathedral. As the figures got closer the distinct exorcist uniform could be seen on 3 of them. There were another 4 finders accompanying them.<p>

"Come on, we need to hurry" said one of the exorcists. "We wasted enough time already because our train arrived late."

"We know Chaoji we were there too" said another exorcist.

"Well sorry" Chaoji said sarcastically. It was at this moment they heard laughter coming from above them. They looked up to see a figure standing on top of the cathedral.

"Well, well, well" said Matt, "look who decided to show up. You know for a while I thought this would be an uneventful trip, but that would've been boring." Matt said this but in reality, Matt had wished they'd never shown up. Matt then leapt from the top of the cathedral. He landed in front of the exorcists. As he touched the ground, the ground below him turned instantly into sand, absorbing the blow. Even though the landing was absorbed by sand, it didn't stop the entire ground from shaking violently. Matt stepped out of the sand and stretched his neck before looking at the exorcists. Matt looked at the exorcists, he could sense fear coming from at least 1 of the exorcists. Matt then smiled and spoke.

"Now then, let's get started shall we?

**That was chapter 23, I hope you enjoyed it. Like the last 2 chapters this will be a minimum of 2 parts as I simply ran out of time to write the story before I uploaded it. Either way part 2 will come out tomorrow as I am somehow managing to update everyday (which can be really challenging at times). I must ask though was the little recap (of Matt's new form) appropriate for this point in the story? Or should I have waited until I used that form again? Any feedback is greatly appreciated and I would like to thank those who have given me feedback in the last few days when I asked about the story. So don't be afraid to review as it really helps me write the story. Anyways chapter 24 coming soon!**

**On a separate note I am still trying to work things out with my prequel Birth of Madness. I am trying to get some chapters finished but I am finding it difficult to write the chapters.**

**One final note (I promise), I have decided to write a sequel to this story, so that does mean that this one will eventually end (when? I have no idea). But I still want to develop Matt a bit more and get all of his abilities ironed out before I really get started on it. Luckily I have several ideas for the sequel and I've begun writing them down. Anyways that's it for the day, see you next time!**


	24. Midnight Battle part 2: The Message

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Chaoji activated his innocence and rushed at Matt, hoping to get the first hit. As he ran towards Matt he noticed that Matt wasn't even flinching, just then he noticed a stone pillar coming out of the ground aimed at him. He raised his hands and blocked the attack.

"Well that's a surprise" said Matt as he watched Chaoji block his attack with his bare hands. "That attack had enough force to stop a charging elephant, I wouldn't have expected a mere exorcist like yourself to stop it." Chaoji didn't listen. He quickly ran passed the pillar and began to charge at Matt again. "However, you are quite slow" Matt said as he side-stepped Chaoji's attack.

"Are you guys going to just stand there or are you going to help me" Chaoji asked the two other exorcists. The two looked at each other and activated their innocence. One carried two medium length daggers, which he held so that the blades were pointing at him. The other had his arms turn into what appeared to be mini cannons; this caught Matt's attention.

"A parasite-type exorcist? I haven't seen one of you in a while" Matt said with interest. But at the same time the exorcists with the daggers had reached him and took a swing at Matt who ducked out of the way. The exorcist then brought his arm back hoping to catch Matt off guard but Matt managed to push his hand into the air making the dagger go above his head. Matt then kicked the exorcist in the gut sending the exorcists flying into the wall of a nearby building. Matt stood up and was about to turn his attention to Chaoji but a quick beam of light passed by his head and caused a large explosion in the building behind him.

"So you want to be next on my list" said Matt as he turned to the exorcist.

Matt was about to attack when Chaoji ran up behind Matt and punched him in the back. In an instant Matt was sent straight flying into a building. Matt laid in a pile of rubble inside the building. As Matt stood up he noticed that he was being watched. He looked over to see a woman with her child standing at the bottom of a staircase.

"Well this is just great" Matt said to himself. "What am I supposed to do now?" He walked up to the woman and child. Matt could tell that they were terrified.

"We'll give you whatever you want please just leave us alone" the woman pleaded.

"I'm not here for your possessions" Matt said calmly. "I would recommend that you take your kid and go back upstairs and ignore anything you hear coming from outside." Matt then turned and left the building.

Once outside Matt saw that the two exorcists were waiting for him. Once they saw him the exorcist with the cannons took several shots at Matt, who dodged all of them and went immediately into attacking the exorcists. Chaoji went to get in between Matt and his comrade and went to punch Matt. During the punch however he saw Matt's left eye change to red and black, and then he vanished so all Chaoji managed to hit was smoke. Chaoji stared at the area Matt once stood then he heard a scream come from behind him. He turned around to see that that one of his comrade's right arm had been cut off. Chaoji, in hopes to defend his friend, went to attack Matt. Matt looked at Chaoji and tried to turn his arm into a sword. His arm became horribly deformed as only parts of the sword materialized.

"Crap I forgot" Matt said to himself as he jumped out of the way.

"What was that just now" asked Chaoji.

"That is none of your business" said Matt as the stone around him arm crumbled away. "But tell me, you look rather familiar, have I fought you before?"

"I don't believe we have Noah" Chaoji said, a little surprised about the question.

"Then tell me your name because I swear I've seen you before."

"My name is Chaoji Han" said Chaoji. Once Chaoji said his name, Matt immediately remembered where he had seen him before.

"Now I remember! You were that pathetic person that was with Allen and Lenalee on the old ark 2 years ago."

"Wait, you were there?"

"For a little bit but I left before any of the fighting started. Road then mentioned you later." Chaoji shuttered when he remembered being stuck in Road's dice and was forced to watch his friends fight. "Tell me are you and Lenalee friends?"

"Yes we are. But why does that concern you?"

"I have a message to deliver to her" as he said this Matt disappeared again. Chaoji looked around knowing that Matt could appear at any moment. Then he saw a long clawed hand rest on his shoulder. Matt had transformed into his awakened form, he leaned over and whispered into his ear.

"Tell Lenalee that I ran into him in Cairo after our battle" Matt whispered and pushed Chaoji away.

"Wait who's 'him'" asked Chaoji as he turned around and faced Matt.

"No one that concerns you" said Matt, "however, Lenalee will understand what I am saying. I need you to deliver that message. That is if you survive." Then, one of Matt's hand's grabbed Chaoji and launched him into the air sending Chaoji far away from the battle. The other exorcist then placed one of his cannon arms behind Matt's head.

"Don't move or I'll kill you where you stand" said the exorcist. Matt simply laughed at what the exorcist said.

"I'd like to see you try" taunted Matt. The exorcist then took a shot at Matt blowing his head clean off. The exorcist stood over the corpse and was about to leave when he heard a cracking sound coming from the body. He looked down to see the body was nothing more than stone. The exorcist only had a few moments to take in the sight before Matt's sword arm pierced through his back and now was sticking out of his chest.

"When will you exorcists ever learn" said Matt, "I mean I've defeated so many exorcists using this strategy. Seriously it's boring."

"Damn you" said the exorcist as he died. Matt pulled his arm out of the exorcist's body then remembered that there was another exorcist. He turned to the building that he had kicked him into but the exorcist was nowhere to be found. The finders had also disappeared. Matt shrugged figuring that they had fled and given up the innocence. A few minutes later Tyki and Road emerged from the cathedral, Tyki was carrying the innocence.

"Hey what took you so long" asked Matt as they approached him.

"Sorry, the innocence was hidden in the cathedral's crypts so it took a little longer than expected" said Tyki.

"Yeah, it was kinda gross, digging through all those dead people" said Road.

"That's strange, I thought of all people in our family, you would be the one who would enjoy that" said Matt. Road simply glared at him.

"I see you had some company out here" said Tyki referencing the dead exorcist and the large hole in one of the buildings.

"Yeah, but they were all weak and they fled. Now can we go home? I'm tired of being here."

"Sure thing" said Tyki and an ark gate opened. The three then entered the gate without any thought of looking back.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. This one was kind of stressful to make as I was sick while writing it so this chapter wasn't written at a 100%. If I feel like it I may revise it sometime. Anyways, please review or leave any feedback as it does help me write the story. Chapter 25 coming soon!**


	25. A brief moment of rest

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

When Tyki, Road and Matt crossed through the ark gate they found themselves in another large city.

"What's going on here" Matt asked as he looked around.

"It looks like we have another mission, otherwise the gate would have taken us back to the ark" said Tyki.

"That's exactly right" said a voice coming from an alleyway. The three Noah looked over to see an akuma approach them.

"I take it you were sent by the Earl" asked Tyki.

"Yes I was" said the akuma. "The Earl wants you three to intercept a group of exorcists that will be passing through the area. They are escorting several new accommodators back to their headquarters, and the Earl wants to restrict the number of accommodators that the Black Order has."

"When will they be passing through" asked Tyki.

"They should be coming through the city sometime this afternoon."

"Very well, go and follow the exorcists, let us know if anything happens."

"Yes my lord" said the akuma before leaving. Matt watched the akuma leave when he heard Road speak.

"Hey Matt, I just noticed but is your arm alright?" Matt looked at his left arm. It was still partially deformed from his fight. There were still parts of his arm still looking like a sword, while the rest showed his regular arm.

"Yeah, I should be fine" Matt said, trying to downplay how strange it looked.

"Here" said Tyki and he handed Matt several bandages, "wrap up your arm, there's no need to attract any attention while we wait."

"Fine" said Matt and he wrapped his entire arm in bandages with the help of Tyki.

"Hey can we find a place to sleep, I'm exhausted and there's still a long time before day breaks" Road complained.

"Sure, luckily for us the gate left us right in front of a hotel" said Tyki as he pointed to the building across the street. The three of them entered the hotel and approached the front desk where a middle aged man sat behind the desk.

"Why hello there, how can I help you this night" asked the man.

"Yes we need a few rooms, do you have any" asked Tyki.

"As a matter of I do, I have a 3 room suite that is available."

"That will do" said Tyki and pulled out a roll of money and placed it on the desk. "Will this be enough?" The man counted the money then nodded and handed them a key.

"The room in on the top floor, across from the stairs."

"Thank you very much" said Tyki and the three left the lobby and headed for the room.

* * *

><p>Once inside their room everyone began to settle down for the night. Tyki took one of the bedrooms while Road took the other. Matt looked through a large collection of books in the room, picked one and sat down on the couch and began to read.<p>

It was nearly dawn when Matt closed the book and placed it on the table in front of the couch. Matt then closed his eyes to meditate. Road was the first to leave her room, she noticed a pile of books on the table, she then looked at Matt who she mistook for being asleep. Road then walked up to the couch and sat down, picking up one of the books.

"What are you doing Road" asked Matt, his eyes still closed. Road jumped, a little startled.

"Matt, you're awake" Road said in surprise.

"I always am" Matt said keeping his eyes close, "you should know that."

"I know, I just forgot" said Road.

"It feels like we just recently had this conversation Road, how could you have forgotten already?"

"I don't know. Hey, how's your arm doing" asked Road, trying to hide the fact that Matt was right.

"I have movement in my hand now, it's somewhat difficult to move but I do believe I can fight with it" said Matt, his eyes now open, looking at his arm and clenching his fist.

"That's impressive that your arm is able to move already and it's only been 2 days. Tyki said that it would be a few days before you could even move it."

"Tyki gave his opinion but it's not like he's a doctor or anything."

"True, so what do you want to do today?"

"I'm going to stay here and meditate. Majnun said he would teach me more about my ultimate form."

"Oh, I see" Road said with a disappointed look.

"That doesn't mean you can't do something with Tyki" Matt said trying to reassure her, "Who knows, he might even buy you some candy."

"Don't tease me Matt" Road said 'playfully' punching Matt in the shoulder. Matt winced a little and rubbed his shoulder. It was at this moment that Tyki entered the room.

"Good morning Matt. Good morning Road. How long have you been awake" said Tyki. Matt nodded at Tyki acknowledging him.

"I've been up for a few minutes" replied Road, and then she stood up and walked up to Tyki. "Hey Tyki, do you think you could go out with me and buy me some candy?"

"Sure thing Road, we'll go out when the shops open" Tyki said with a smile. Road jumped for joy.

"Told you he would Road" Matt said with a smile.

"So this was you're doing" Tyki said looking at Matt.

"I may have mentioned something on those lines" Matt said with a grin.

"I thought so. So I take it that you'll be staying here?"

"Yes. I have no need to go out right now."

The sun finally rose and Tyki and Road left to go shopping. Matt had just sat down to meditate when there was a knock at the door. Matt opened the door and there stood a man who looked homeless.

"Can I help you" Matt asked, though he really didn't care.

"I have word about the exorcists" the man said.

"I'm listening" said Matt.

"May I come in?"

"No you may not akuma. Say what needs to be said then leave  
>Matt said in a cold voice.<p>

"Of course, the group you wanted me to follow has just passed through the city; they appear to be heading out to a certain point."

"And why is that?"

"From what we know it looks like the exorcists will be meeting up with another group who is coming from another mission."

"How many exorcists are meeting up with them?"

"At least 3."

"And when will they meet up?"

"I'm not sure my lord."

"Very well, thank you for the information. Can you relay this to Tyki and Road? They are in the city shopping. Tell them everything you told me, and tell them that I have already departed to intercept the exorcists."

"It will be done my lord" said the akuma and he left. Matt walked back into the room, grabbed his cloak and left.

* * *

><p>Once outside the city, Matt quickly discovered the group of exorcists camped out near a crossroads. Matt looked down at his left hand and tightly clenched his fist. He then looked up and began to walk up to the exorcists in his white form. The exorcists were talking when one of them noticed Matt approaching them.<p>

"Hey look" said one of the exorcists gesturing at Matt. The other 2 exorcists looked at Matt as well as the accommodators.

"Doesn't look like an ordinary traveller does it" said another.

"No, it doesn't" agreed the other. The three stood up and approached Matt who stopped walking.

"What is your business here akuma? You are far outnumbered to take us on."

Matt gave them a death glare. "Do not call me an akuma foolish exorcist. I am on a completely different level" Matt said as he reverted to his Noah form. The exorcists took a step back which made Matt grin. "A word of advice to you, come at me with all your might. Otherwise, you won't stand a chance" said Matt and the ground began to shake.

**There we go chapter 25, I hope you enjoyed reading it. As always please review. Chapter 26 coming soon!**

**As I am now 25 chapters into my story I have to ask, has the pacing of the story been too fast? Is it to slow? Sometimes it is hard to tell because I'm writing whatever idea I have in my head at the time (except 1 which I am saving for a special occasion XD). The feedback I have received in my previous questions have been incredibly helpful and I just wanted to know if the story is progressing at a good pace. As mentioned I am now 25 chapters into my story and I must thank everyone for continuing to read my story. I will continue to write this story until I run out of ideas, and then it will be time for the sequel (which I still can't figure a name out for and haven't started writing.) Anyways that's it for today, until next time!**


	26. Three agianst one: the battle begins

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC (which is Matt of course XD)**

The ground began to shake violently but the three exorcists stood their ground and activated their innocence. One carried dual pistols, another carried a scythe, and the third carried a chained-sickle.

"You were a fool to challenge us by yourself Noah" said the exorcist with the pistols.

"Oh? And why is that" Matt asked, amused by their arrogance.

"Because we are the famous Three Brothers squad" said the exorcist with the pistols. "I am Samuel, the eldest brother.

"I am Luke, the middle brother" said the exorcist with the scythe.

"And I am Joseph, the youngest brother" said the exorcist with the chained-sickle. The three brothers then stuck a ridiculous pose. Matt simply stared at them for a moment then erupted into laughter.

"Hey, what's so funny" yelled Luke.

"You're kidding right" Matt managed to say as he caught his breath. "You have got to be the most ridiculous group of exorcists I have ever seen! And honestly what's with that name?"

"It's an awesome name" yelled Luke.

"Sure it is" Matt said sarcastically, "I'm paralyzed with fear."

"You should be" said Luke and he attacked Matt with his brothers following right behind him. Luke leapt into the air and swung his scythe at Matt who merely side-stepped the attack. Joseph followed up immediately by swing his chained-sickle at Matt who took a single step back and had the sickle pass in front of him. Samuel then shot his pistols at Matt who didn't even move because every shot missed him.

"You're kidding me" Matt said, a little annoyed. "I mean I knew you would be weak but come on, this is just pathetic!"

"We aren't done yet" said Samuel, "Luke, Joseph attack plan 2." The brothers nodded and went back to attacking Matt. Luke swung his scythe several times at Matt, which Matt easily evaded by taking a few steps in various directions, and jumping once. Then, Luke grabbed Matt and held his right arm. As Matt focused on Luke, felt a chain wrap around his left arm, he looked down to see that Joseph had wrapped the chain part of his sickle around Matt's arm and was holding him in place.

"What are you planning" Matt asked and then he saw Samuel aiming at Matt with two cannon-like weapons. A large beam charged up then fired at Matt. Matt realizing he was in danger turned his right arm into a sword which cut Luke's hand. He then swung his arm around and broke the chain holding his left arm in place. Then Matt looked up but the beam had just about to hit him. Matt's eyes widened and there was a massive explosion as the two beams hit Matt.

"Way to go Samuel" said Luke as he walked up to Samuel.

"Seriously, you totally took him out" said Joseph as he joined his brothers, "But I wish you took the shot sooner, I'm going to need Komui to fix the chain of my weapon."

"I'm sure he will" Samuel said with a smile. But that smile did not last long as the three of them could hear faint laughter coming from the smoke where Matt was standing. There was a large gust of wind and the smoke blew away revealing Matt in his awakened form. Matt stood there laughing lightly. The brothers' eyes widened in shock, not only because he was still alive, but apart from a few scratches and tattered clothing, Matt was completely unscathed.

"How are you still alive" asked Samuel in horror, "You took a direct hit from my death cannons."

"Obviously you don't know who I am" Matt said, after he finished laughing.

"Of course we do, you're a Noah" said Luke.

"That's not what I mean you idiot" Matt said with a scolding tone. "I mean, which apostle am I?"

"Does it matter" Luke asked arrogantly.

"Actually, I think it does" Joseph said to Luke. "Remember at headquarters they mentioned that if we were to ever engage a specific Noah, we were told to flee."

"So what, you think that this guy is that Noah?"

"I think he very well might be" said Samuel. Matt stood there, listening to their conversation, becoming more and more irritated with each word they spoke.

"Enough of this" Matt yelled. "I am not going to sit around here while you three talk. I personally don't care if you know who I am because you will be dead soon." Matt then vanished, which surprised the brothers.

"Where did he go" Luke asked frantically as he looked for Matt.

"I don't know" said Samuel, "but if we stick together here he shouldn't be able to sneak up on us right Joseph?" There was a pause but Joseph didn't respond. "Am I right Joseph" asked Samuel again as he turned to where Joseph was and saw Joseph lying on the ground with 5 puncture marks through his chest. "Joseph" yelled Samuel as he ran to the aid of his brother. Luke ran up to Samuel who was checking on their fallen brother.

"How is he" asked Luke.

"He's dead" Samuel said with a saddened voice.

"How could that be" Joseph asked with both shock and disbelief in his voice.

"I don't know, just keep your eyes open, we don't know when he'll strike again." Samuel was about to get up when he saw Matt kneeling down in front of him. Matt had a grin on his face as he placed a single clawed finger on Samuel's forehead.

"Destroy" said Matt. Samuel's eyes widened and fell to the ground. Luke, who had heard Matt's voice, turned around to see Samuel lying on the ground. He knelt down to see if he was alright but he saw that life had left his eyes. Luke began to cry as he had just lost both his brothers in a matter of seconds. Then he felt a presence next to him.

"It's such a shame that you had to lose your bothers like that" said Matt, crouched down next to Luke. Luke then took a swing at Matt with his scythe and cut right through him, but he realized that what he hit was a stone clone of Matt. "I could bring at least one of them back for you if you want" said Matt again, this time on the other side of Luke. Luke then stood up and was about to strike Matt again but he felt something pierce his chest. He looked down and 5 clawed fingers sticking out of his chest.

"You'll pay for this someday" Luke muttered as the fingers pulled out and he fell to the ground, dead.

"I doubt it" said Matt. He then noticed the accommodators who just watched the whole battle. He walked up to them with a sadistic grin on his face. "Well, you must be the new accommodators I've heard about. I hope you enjoyed the little demonstration I gave you." Matt raised his right hand, preparing to strike them down. "Welcome to the war."

"Hold it right there Noah" a voice yelled from behind him. Matt turned his head to see 4 exorcists standing by the corpses of the newly killed exorcists. "If you want to kill them, you'll have to go through us first." Matt smiled and lowered his hand and turned to the exorcists.

"So who wants to die first" asked Matt.

"You are going to fight me" said a tall man wearing a mask.

"And who are you?"

"My name is General Winters Socalo, and I will be the one who kills you Noah. I hope you put up a good fight because the last few akuma I've faced were boring as hell to fight."

"A general" Matt said with surprise. Then I guess I shouldn't hold back now should I" said Matt, then he shut his eyes for a moment.

_Majnun, you never got to teach me anything new about my form, should I use it_, Matt thought to Majnun.

_Don't worry, I'll tell you what needs to be done if the time arises. For now use the abilities you already know. And please don't forget you have to wait a short period of time before trying to block an attack_, said Majnun.

_Fine_, thought Matt and he opened his eyes. Matt's aura surrounded him and after a moment the aura dispersed revealing Matt in his ultimate form.

"You're lucky, you will be the second person who has ever seen this form" said Matt.

"And what is this form?"

"My ultimate form: Zettai-tekina Kyoki. Now prepare yourself general, because I won't hold back."

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I must thank the manga/anime Soul Eater for giving me the idea for the weapons (I was kinda lazy today to think of other weapons and I'm willing to admit it). Anyways, please review. Chapter 27 coming soon!**

**As I mentioned, I was kinda lazy and took weapon ideas from another manga. While I know this isn't really a big problem I am trying to avoid those types of things so I was wondering, in the next group of random exorcists, what weapons should I use? I'm sure I could come up with something but I'd like to hear what you, the readers, think a good weapon would be. Also, I must ask, how have the battles been so far? In my opinion it isn't easy and I feel as if there's only so much I can do before it gets really repetitive. I am trying to mix it up but I would like to hear what you think. Anyways that's it for today until next time!**


	27. Madness vs Madness

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

"So you're not going to hold back? That's good, you might prove to be entertaining" said Winters Socalo as he pressed his hands together and the two half rings on either hand connected. "Torture, Madness" said Winters and the newly formed spiked ring formed two blades on either end of the ring.

"So you're innocence's name is Madness, how ironic" said Matt as he watched Winters activate his innocence. "Chains of Madness" said Matt and dozens of aura chains burst from the ground and began to wrap around Winters. Matt was about to use his Crushing Madness ability but he saw Winters' blade begin to spin rapidly and cut all the chains. He then charged at Matt. Winters reached Matt and swung his sword at Matt who lifted both arms to block the hit. The blades made contact and the force could be felt by the exorcists watching. Sparks flew from where the blades were making contact with Matt's arms.

_Matt, you need to move_, said Majnun. _You are faster than ever now, you could have avoided that attack and not had wasted your invulnerability._

"Thanks for the info, could've used it a few moments ago" Matt said sarcastically.

"Who are you talking to" Winters asked as he continued to press his blade. Matt simply smiled and vanished causing the bladed to hit the ground. Winters looked around and saw that Matt was standing several hundred feet away from him. "How did he do that" Winters said to himself. "Speed was not in the report Kanda gave us." He lifted his blade up and it began to spin at an extremely high speed to the point that the blade was turning red. "Cremation Dance" yelled Winters and he threw his blade at Matt. Matt jumped to the side dodging the attack then vanished again, this time leaving a small crater. Instantly, Matt was in front of Winters. Winters' eyes widened as Matt punched him in the stomach which sent him flying. Matt stood there as the general stood up after a moment.

"Is that all you've got" Winters said in a mocking tone. "I've had akuma who've hit harder than that." This infuriated Matt and He rushed towards Winters. This time when he reached him he faked a punch which caused Winters to raise his arms in defense, and then Matt vanished and instantly reappeared behind him this time however he kicked the general in the back sending him flying once again. Winters ended up landing next to his sword, which he used to help him stand up. At the same time Matt noticed that Tyki and Road had just arrived.

"What took you so long" Matt yelled in annoyance.

"Sorry, we had only just found out" said Tyki. "But we're here now so we can help."

"Fine you and Road take those 3 exorcists I can handle this." Tyki looked over to see that he was fighting a general.

"Are you sure Matt? You didn't exactly fair well against your last opponent and he wasn't a general" asked Tyki.

"I'll be fine, just make sure that those three don't get in the way."

"Very well come on Road" said Tyki as he looked at Road who was sucking on a lollipop.

* * *

><p>Matt turned his attention back to the general who was already in the process of attacking him. Matt managed to dodge out of the way but a part of his arm was hit by the skimmed by the blade. Matt looked at his arm and saw that his wound was healing slower than usual. He was about to ask Majnun about this but Winters attacked him again forcing Matt to focus on the battle. Winters was becoming frustrated; he hated the fact that he couldn't hit his foe. Then he saw blood drip from Matt's right arm.<p>

"It looks like I managed to hit you there Noah."

"It's just a scratch. It's all I'm going to allow you to have though." At that time hands began to come from the ground, two of them managed to grab Winters' legs. Winters looked down to see that the arms were attached to faceless bodies that were still partially in the ground. He then looked around to see that he was surrounded by these faceless beings.

"What type of ability is this" Winters asked himself. He had heard of Matt's clone ability but for some reason this felt different than what he was expecting, he felt darkness within each and every body. Winters cut the arms off of the bodies holding his legs. Instead of crumbling away, black blood sprayed out of the severed arms covering the lower half Winters' in the strange blood. Winters stepped away from the bodies and saw that they weren't crumbling away. Instead, their arms began to reform. He looked around and saw that the other clones began to walk towards him. Winters then began to cut his way through the crowding bodies. Body parts went flying in every direction until eventually all the bodies were on the ground. By this point Winters was completely covered in blood. He was about to turn his attention back to Matt, who was watching with great interest, but he saw that many of the bodies began to reform and stand back up. Winters began to panic but then noticed that the ones that laid on the ground all had their head's destroyed. Realizing their weakness he quickly dealt with the remaining clones. Afterwards he turned to Matt.

"What was that" Winters asked Matt. "That was no ordinary clone."

"That's because they weren't" said Matt after just receiving a full explanation from Majnun. "Those were Madness clones; they are quite an interesting creature. They kind of remind me of zombies. And apparently they die the same way as zombies. I will have to make a mental note of that." Matt then charged at Winters but before he could reach him a body went flying past him stopping Matt in his tracks. He looked to where to body landed and his eyes widened in horror. He saw Road lying on the ground, a large wound could be seen where her stomach is.

"Road" yelled Matt as he rushed to help her but Winters intercepted him.

"You have other things to worry about than your little friend" said Winters. Matt looked to Tyki who he saw having difficulty of his own. He also saw that there was 1 dead exorcist with dozens on candles piercing the body. The third exorcist had a few candles in him but he seemed to be holding up. Matt then turned back to Winters.

"Get out of my way" yelled Matt and the ground began to shake. Winters looked confident and ready for anything. However that look changed to shock as he looked up. Matt not knowing what he was doing saw a large shadow block out the sun. Matt turned around to see half of a clone emerging from the ground. The body was absolutely massive, at least 200ft (70m) high. Matt looked at the figure in total shock.

"What is that" Matt asked himself.

_That is a larger form of your Madness Clone,_ said Majnun, _you accidently created a large one. However, you don't have much control of it so it is highly unstable. _As Majnun said this the clone began to break down and collapse back into the ground. Winters saw the creature failing and began to laugh.

"You had me worried for a second but it looks like it was just a bluff" said Winters as he attacked Matt. Matt, seeing Winters attack him created several aura arms to grab him. Even though Winters managed to cut through most of them, the sheer number of arms eventually managed to grab his innocence and stop the blade from spinning. One of the arms crushed the arm Winters was using to wield his weapon forcing him to drop it. Matt walked up to Winters, looked at him for a moment then knelt down to where the blade Madness laid. Matt then hovered his hand over the blade and after a moment the blade shattered into pieces, revealing the innocence. Matt then picked up the innocence and stood up.

"So this is the innocence known as Madness" said Matt holding the piece of innocence up in front of Winters. "Doesn't look like anything special" Matt then crushed it. There was a quick green flash, then as he opened his hand the dust from the innocence fell out and poured to the ground. "Oops, my hand slipped."

"Damn you exorcist" said Winters. Matt was about to speak when he sensed someone rushing towards him. He turned around and saw the exorcist that attacked Road was running towards him. "Foolish" said Matt then several chains came from the ground and wrapped around the exorcist. The exorcist struggled to free himself as Matt raised his hand and then clenched his fist shut. The chains were pulled back into the ground cutting the exorcist's body into pieces. Matt then turned his attention back to Winters. "How noble, an exorcist sacrificing his life to protect his general."

"I don't care. The idiot threw away his life."

"So cruel, even to your own allies" said Matt as a new one of the hands holding Winters lifted his helmet off and then wrapped around his neck. "General Winters Socalo, you were a worthy opponent, any last words?" Right when Matt said that Winters quickly stabbed Matt in his left arm with a piece of his broken sword. Matt pulled his arm back in pain.

"Yeah, I got something to say" said Winters with a grin. "I'll see you in hell!" At that moment the arm wrapped around his neck tightened and the sound of his neck breaking could be heard. The arms then released Winters who fell to the ground dead.

* * *

><p>Matt reverted back to his Noah form as he stared at the body for a brief moment. He then ran to Road, ignoring the blade shard in arm. He knelt beside Road and checked to see if she was alright. Tyki approached Matt, having just dealt with the exorcist he was fighting; he saw that Matt, for the first time was visibly worried about someone's well-being. Matt listened then gave a sigh of relief when he saw that Road was breathing. After a moment, Road opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was Matt standing over her.<p>

"Matt? What are you doing" Road weakly asked.

"Isn't that obvious, I'm making sure you're alright" said Matt as he lifted her up. "I'm just glad you're alright, you gave me quite the scare back there."

"I'm sorry" Road said frowning.

"Don't be. Right now let's just get you back to the ark so you can rest."

"Alright" said Road as an ark gate opened.

"Who knows, maybe we'll finally get a break" Matt said with a smile hoping to cheer her up as the three of them entered the gate.

"I hope so" said Road with a smile as the gate closed behind them.

**Author's Note: To avoid confusion (and because I realized that I left out a bit of info), Socalo had managed to grab a piece of his shattered blade when Matt was distracted by the attacking exorcist. I am going to leave this in until I fix it.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. This was definitely the hardest battle that I've had to write. Because I added a new ability, I will update my character bio on my homepage that gives a better description. Please review! Chapter 18 coming soon!**

**As I said, this was the hardest battle I have ever written. I would like to know: how well the chapter turned out in the pacing, and action? Anyways, I have another arc idea ready to be written, it won't have as many battle scenes but it does have a lot of conflict (hopefully, assuming I write it properly :P).**


	28. A birthday to remember

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

One week had passed since the battle between Matt and Winters Socalo. Matt, Road, and Tyki were given a break from fighting due to their near constant battles. However, Matt wished that the break came at another time because he had forgotten the fact that today was a day he wished he could forget.

Matt was meditating in his room when he heard the door open to his room. He opened his eyes to see Road walking in.

"Hello Road, how can I help you" Matt asked with a smile.

"I just came to see how your arm is doing" said Road as she took a seat in Matt's armchair.

"My arm is doing fine, though it does itch every once in a while" said Matt. For some reason the wound Winters gave Matt did not heal like his other wounds and was forced to be stitched shut to prevent blood lose. "But I can tell that this isn't the real reason why you're here. What are you up to?"

"Well, it's Father. He will be throwing a party and you are required to come" said Road. Matt however noticed she was hiding something.

"Oh really? And what is the occasion for this party" asked Matt, prying for information,

"Does he really need one? He is the Prime Minister of Portugal after all" said Road who was now on the defensive.

"That is true, but usually he does not require me to attend his little parties. Now tell me Road, why am I invited?" Matt stared at her and after a moment, Road sighed and gave in.

"It's because he's throwing you a birthday party" Road said in defeat. Matt immediately stood up and rushed out of his room. Road sighed again and followed after him.

"Road stop following me, there is no way I'm going" going Matt protested."

"Yes you are, you're family therefore if Father asks you to attend, then you must" said Road.

"I'm not part of your family Road. The Noah are my family, I am not a member of the Kamelot family."

"Yes you are" Road continued to protest. "Just because you abandoned your last name does not make you any less than a member of our family."

"Don't give me that crap. I told you and Sheril that I would no longer be part of your little family anymore. I appreciate the fact that you gave me a family when I first joined the Noah, but now the entire Clan is my family and I will not belong to two families."

"You have such strange logic" said Road. "But we still consider you to be part of our family and many of the guests who are attending have wanted to see you again."

"I don't want to associate myself with the subhumans any more than I need to."

"Matt just go" yelled Road, now annoyed at Matt. "It's just one party, it won't kill you!"

"Says you Road. And besides both you and Sheril know that I hate my birthday." Road's faced saddened, knowing exactly what Matt was talking about.

Road sighed and put an arm around Matt. "Look, we are all here to help you Matt. After all we are family. Father was just hoping that we could make today a better day for you." Matt smiled at Road.

"Fine" said Matt as he pulled away from Road. Road looked up to see that the tears had left Matt's eyes. "I suppose if you're going to continue to nag me I guess I have no choice but to go."

"Yay" cheered Road.

"You always get your way Road don't you" Matt smiled.

"Of course" Road said returning the smile. "Meet me at the mansion in a few hours prepared for the party ok?"

"Sure thing Road, but when does the party start? This seems a little early."

"Yeah, Sheril, Tyki and I wanted to see you for a bit before the party."

"I see, well I guess I'll see you then" said Matt as he walked back to his room to prepare.

* * *

><p>Matt arrived outside of the Kamelot mansion exactly when Matt said he would be there. He was wearing a black tuxedo with white gloves and he wore a top hat. As Matt walked up to the large mansion doors he took a deep breath. The last time he was here he had walked away from the family. He then knocked on the door which opened almost immediately. The butler who opened the door recognized Matt immediately and gave him a small smile.<p>

"Welcome home young master" said the butler. Matt simply nodded and entered the house.

"Where is Sheril" Matt asked the butler.

"He is on the second floor library" the butler immediately answered and Matt walked away.

After a short walk Matt arrived at the library. When he entered he saw Road sitting on Sheril's lap reading a book and eating some candy. He also saw Tyki sitting in another chair reading a book as well. Road was the first to look see Matt.

"Matt you came" Road said happily as she leapt of Sheril's lap and skipped to Matt. Matt smiled and patted Road on the head.

"I told you I would come didn't I?"

"Yes, but you've said that before" Tyki pointed out without looking at Matt. Matt gave him a quick glare then looked at Sheril. "You know I would rather not be here don't you?"

"I know Matt but please put up with it, a lot of people will be coming to this party so please put on a good face for the party" said Sheril standing up.

"Of course I will Sheril."

"Oh yes that reminds me, during the party you'll have to address me as 'father' to keep up appearances."

"You're pushing your luck you know that right?"

"I realize but like I said it is for appearances."

"Very well, I will do my best" Matt said with a sigh. "Speaking of appearances, how old am I again in this little charade?"

"You are turning 18 today" Sheril informed Matt.

"Man, I hate faking my age" Matt said.

"Yes well, I said I took you in at the age of 8 when your parents died so it has to be that way. And besides you don't look 21 so it works out."

"Don't remind me." At that time a butler entered the room.

"Excuse me master, but the party preparations have been complete."

"Very good" Sheril said happily "I'll be right there to look over everything." The butler bowed and exited the room. "I'm sorry, but I need to take care of this. After all everything must be perfect." Matt nodded and Sheril left the room. Matt then sat down in the chair that Sheril was sitting in and relaxed a bit.

"So how are you holding up" Tyki asked Matt as he continued to read his book.

"I'm fine. I'd rather not celebrate anything today but it can't be helped it looks like."

"Are you really still sore about what happened so long ago?"

"Are you saying I shouldn't? That was a life changing moment. A moment that I wish I could take back" Matt looked down and looked sad.

"It was bound to happen so I really don't see the point of being so depressed over it."

"I suppose you're right, but I was young and foolish I didn't think things through and I paid the consequences."

"You still are pretty foolish" said Tyki. Matt could see a slight grin coming from Tyki as he said it which made Matt laugh.

"Yeah, I guess I am. And it's not like I hate the life I was given. I wouldn't want my life any other way, but still I wish that it could've been avoided."

"It was bound to happen" said Tyki as he closed his book and placed it down on the small table next to the chair.

"Yeah Matt" agreed Road as she walked up to Matt and leaned against the chair.

"You might be right, but that doesn't change anything. Now if you don't mind I'm going to get some fresh air" said Matt as he stood up and left the room.

Matt found his way to the balcony that over looked the main entrance. He watched as the sun began to set and the guests for the party arrive. Eventually Road approached him all dressed up for the occasion.

"Well look who's all dolled up" joked Matt.

"It may be a birthday party but it's still a formal event. Come on Matt, Father is about to formally start the party.

"Right, let's get this over with" said Matt as he stood up and accompanied Road to the foyer. Matt eventually joined Sheril at the top of the stairs that overlooked the foyer. After a moment Sheril cleared his voice and the entire crowd quieted down.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, esteemed guests. Thank you for coming tonight as we celebrate my adoptive son's 18th birthday. Now before I formally begin the party, I would like my son to give us a few words." Matt gave Sheril a quick look of shock but then recovered.

"You'll pay for this" Matt said under his breath, keeping his smile.

"Oh just do it" responded Sheril under his breath. Matt then cleared his voice.

"Thank you father" Matt almost chocked on those words as he was not used to calling Sheril 'father'. "As my father said, thank you so much for coming and celebrating my birthday despite the fact that I have not been in touch for so long. Even from up here I recognize many faces and I look forward to reacquainting myself with everyone. Now please enjoy yourselves." The crowd gave Matt a round of applause.

"Now everyone let the party begin" said Sheril and music began to play.

* * *

><p>Matt spent several hours talking to nearly all of the guests and dancing with many of the young women there. Despite the fact that he didn't want to be there, Matt began to really enjoy himself. The party brought back many fond memories that he had long since forgotten, and forgot the memories that haunted his past. However the party finally ended and as Matt he wished everyone farewell the memories began to creep back into his thoughts. After all the guests had left Matt met up with Road, Sheril and Tyki on the balcony overlooking the garden in the back of the house. Tyki, Road, and Matt all drank wine while road sucked on a lollipop.<p>

"So Matt did you enjoy your party" asked Sheril.

"To my surprise I did, I really must thank you for sending Road to invite me. Otherwise I wouldn't have come."

"Of course" said Sheril. "She was the only one who would ever convince you to do anything that you didn't want to do."

"I think she still is" Matt agreed. "After all, she was the first real family I had after I killed my mother and I was taken away to the ark."

"To think, it's been 11 years toady, since the day you joined us. I was surprised that you and Road were able to get along so quickly" said Sheril.

"I'm just that great" said Road with pride. Matt laughed.

"You really were a big help to me dear sister" Matt cut himself off when he realized what he had just called her hoping that she didn't hear that last part. Unfortunately, he saw Road's eyes widen, she did hear.

"What did you call me" asked Road.

"Nothing at all Road, I don't know what you're talking about" said Matt, hoping that he could avoid what he had just said.

"You just called me your sister."

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Matt said even though he knew he wasn't going to win this conversation.

"I know what I heard" said Road as she skipped over to Matt and wrapped her arms around Matt. "Does this mean you'll be part of the family again?"

"I suppose I could give it a shot" said Matt as he pushed Road off of him, then taking a sip of the wine he had. "But I won't take the last name back."

"It's part of the package Matt" said Sheril. "If you are part of this family you must take up the last name as well."

"Well that's no fair, Tyki is part of the family but he doesn't have the Kamelot name" Matt pointed out.

"That's because I don't need a last name" said Tyki.

"I just can't win today can I" Matt said to himself.

"Nope" laughed Road.

"That was rhetorical" said Matt.

"I know." Matt simply laughed at her for a moment and spent the rest of the night enjoying the time he was having with his 'new' family and the peace of mind it gave him.

**I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. Please review. Chapter 29 coming soon!**

**I apologize for such a slow chapter, but I would like to know, how did the chapter turn out? Did this chapter blend well with the rest of the story? I was worried that this type of chapter wouldn't work out well after the last chapter so I would like to know if it worked out. I literally had to rewrite this chapter 2 or 3 times before this version (I swear these kinds of chapters may actually be harder than the fighting chapters).**

**Anyways that's it for today. If I could get some feedback on the question I asked, that would be great! Until next time!**


	29. Scarred for life

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt watched the sun rise after the party, still sitting on the balcony overlooking the garden. He sat in his chair, book in hand. In his opinion, this was probably the most peaceful, tranquil moment of his life. As he stared at the sun rise he heard the door open from behind him. He looked back to see one of the butlers enter the room.

"Can I help you" asked Matt in a pleasant tone.

"Pardon me for the intrusion, but Sheril would like to speak with you in his private study."

"I understand, I'll be right there, thank you" said Matt and the butler reentered the house. Matt read a few more pages of his book, and then put the book down on the small table next to him. Matt sighed and entered the house, taking one quick look at the sun again which was now above the horizon.

Matt knocked on the door of Sheril's private study.

"Come in" said Sheril after a moment of silence. Matt opened the door to see Sheril reading some documents that were on his desk.

"You wanted to see me Sheril" asked Matt. Sheril looked at Matt and put the documents down.

"You can call me father you know, after all you said yourself that you were part of our family again" teased Sheril in an upbeat tone.

"Not going to happen, it doesn't feel right after all these years" Matt said plainly.

"Oh come on, Road calls me father, why can't you?" Matt realized that he wasn't going to win this conversation, so he aimed for a compromise.

"Fine, I'll try to call you father at the house, but once we leave forget it."

"I can live with that" said Sheril and he went back to reading the documents. Matt waited for Sheril to continue to speak but got nothing.

"So, why am I here again? That couldn't have been why you called me here at this hour" said Matt.

"Oh that's right, I had forgotten. Matt I am meeting with a foreign minister today and I need to join me as my personal secretary."

"So you're starting another war" asked Matt.

"Yes, the last war I caused recently ended and the Earl wants me to start another."

"I would be interested in this, but your last secretary took a bullet to the head" Matt pointed out.

"Don't worry, when you push me out of the way, the akuma who will be shooting has been instructed to shoot at your arm. You'll be just fine." Matt thought about it for a moment, realizing that there was no real risk seeing as it was an akuma who would be taking the shot.

"Very well, when will this be taking place?"

"At noon today. I had a suit placed in your room, you should probably get ready in a few hours." Matt simply nodded and left the room.

* * *

><p>The time came for the meeting to commence. Matt stood next to Sheril in his white form as they waited in the conference room for the minister to arrive with his group of aids. After only a few minutes of waiting the door opened and a tall man entered with two men following him.<p>

"Good afternoon minister" said Sheril in a pleasant tone.

"It is very good to see you Sheril" said the minister who then looked over to Matt. "And who is this?"

"This is my son, Matthew. He will be standing in as my secretary for our meeting."

"We were not expecting this, maybe we should come back another time" said one of the men who entered with the foreign minister.

"Rest assured my son is capable of preforming the duties of my normal secretary. You have nothing to worry about."

"Well if the Prime Minister of Portugal says that he is capable then let us begin the peace meeting" said the foreign minister as he sat down at one side of the table, Sheril took his seat and Matt sat at Sheril's left side.

The peace meeting lasted several hours until eventually the two ministers came to an agreement.

"Well this treaty looks good" said Sheril as he looked over the document.

"Indeed" agreed the foreign minister. "With this, our countries will enter a new era of peace." The minister reached into his coat and pulled out a small gun and aimed it at Sheril.

"Father look out" yelled Matt as he pushed Sheril out of the way. The minister then shot the gun and the bullet hit Matt his left arm, the same place where Winters Socalo had stabbed him before he died. Matt felt the pain of the bullet and fell to the ground. Sheril moved next to Matt as the foreign minister's aids restrained their minster.

"We're so sorry Prime Minister, we swear that the minister acted on his own accord, we still seek peace" pleaded one of the aids. Sheril looked at Matt's arm then at the aids.

"You shot my son, who protected me from your assassination attempt. There will be no peace now.

"But Prime Minister" pleaded the aid.

"I'm not listening. Get them out of here" at that moment several men in black suites came over and nearly dragged the foreign minister and his aids out of the room. Sheril looked at Matt again. "You did very well."

"Thanks, but I don't think I'm going to do that again" said Matt as he stood up then he felt a new sensation in his arm, the pain began to worsen, then spread through his entire body. Matt the collapsed to the ground. Sheril's face became extremely worried.

"Matt, what's wrong" asked Sheril, but Matt gave no response. Sheril could see that Matt was in incredible pain. Matt tried to speak but no words came out, he saw his vision go become blurry and felt himself losing consciousness. Matt continued to try to speak but the pain stopped him. After a moment he felt several hands on him as they forced him onto his back. His vision worsened then everything went black.

* * *

><p>Matt's eyes opened and he found himself in his room in the mansion. He looked around and saw that there was a nurse attending to him, probably on Sheril's payroll. He continued to look around and saw that Tyki and Sheril were talking to each other end of the room. As he leaned up he felt that his left arm was extremely heavy. He looked down and saw that his entire arm and hand was bandaged again. However, this time there were strange seals wrapped around his arm.<p>

"What's going on" Matt asked which caught Sheril and Tyki's attention. The two walked over to the side of Matt's bed.

"It's good to see that you're awake" said Sheril, avoiding the question. "You gave us quite the scare back there."

"Forget that, what's wrong with my arm? Why is it so heavy? And why the hell is it bandaged and sealed" Mastt asked annoyed that Sheril tried to avoid the question.

"Matt, when Winters Socalo stabbed you, did he use his anti-akuma weapon" asked Tyki. Matt looked at him in confusion.

"Yeah, he did, so what? It was just a small fragment after I had broken his sword and innocence."

"Well, apparently, innocence entered your arm and began slowly exorcising your Noah."

"What are you talking about? His innocence was destroyed before he stabbed me, there shouldn't have been any innocence" said Matt. He couldn't figure out what was going on.

"Either way, your Noah memories took over and began to combat the innocence in your arm."

"So then I'm alright" said Matt before Tyki could finish.

"Not quite, afterwards we saw some innocence dust leave your arm however the aura around your arm refused to go away, this may be because there is still some innocence dust still inside your arm, we just don't know. However, because you didn't have control of it the aura went berserk and completely destroyed the conference room where you were shot. We were forced to seal your arm."

"But now that I'm conscious, it should be gone."

"That's the problem Matt" said Sheril with a frown. "If the aura went away then the seals would have dissolved by now, meaning that the aura is still surrounding your arm. "

"Let me try something" said Matt as he went into his Noah form. Matt then tried to move his arm which he found to be much easier but saw that the seals were still intact. "Damn it, I thought that might work." Tyki and Sheril looked at each other in confusion.

"What are you talking about Matt" asked Sheril.

"I thought that maybe going into my Noah form would cause the aura to disappear but apparently all it does is make my arm easier to move."

"That's not bad" said Sheril.

"What are you talking about" Matt said in anger. "My aura isn't obeying me."

"I mean, that your arm is able to move. Right now, we are treating your arm as if it was cursed. You'll probably have some control over it but it will never return to normal." Matt looked down at his arm, sad. Then something began to bother him. He looked up and scanned the room.

"What's wrong Matt" asked Sheril.

"Where's Road?"

"She's off on a mission, she left a few hours ago" said Tyki.

"Who is she with" Matt asked impatiently.

"No one, she said it was a solo mission." Matt's eyes widened and he leapt out of bed and grabbed a cloak that was in his armoire and began to leave the room.

"Did she use her door to leave" asked Matt.

"Yes, it should still be up but why are you so concerned" asked Sheril.

"Don't you remember? After I lost control and fully awakened, the Earl said that it was forbidden to go on solo missions."

"Road can handle herself Matt, you should just lay back down and rest" said Sheril.

"I can't, something feels wrong I need to go."

"Hold on" said Sheril and he handed Matt a bunch of seals and bandages. Matt looked at him, a little confused. "It's just in case those seals break for some reason. Just be careful it only takes one broken seal for the rest to break." Matt nodded and left the room, he found Road's door and entered it.

* * *

><p>Sheril and Tyki returned to the second floor library where they began to read some books. An hour passed and an akuma ran into the room, it looked extremely distressed.<p>

"What's wrong" asked Sheril, a little alarmed by the akuma's behavior.

"It's Road and Matt, they're in big trouble" said the akuma. Sheril shot out of his seat.

"What happened?"

"Road was ambushed and heavily outnumbered. Matt showed up and began to fight the exorcists but there are too many of them." Sheril ran past the akuma pushing him out of the way, Tyki was close behind him. The two arrived at where Road opened her door in the mansion and were horrified to see that it was broken

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 30 coming soon!  
>I have 2 questions I would like to ask regarding this chapter, 1.) did this chapter seem to rushed? And 2.) was the last part of the chapter good? Or could I have ended it when Matt entered Road's door?<strong>

**I am really enjoying writing this arc so it may continue for a few more chapters, I don't really know. By the way I should let you know, I didn't actually give the foreign minister a specific country because I really don't want to offend someone (and not even the manga gave a specific country, they just used "XX" to represent the foreign country). I figured I should explain why I didn't give the minister a specific country to represent. Anyways, until next time!**


	30. Fight to the death

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt exited Road's door to find himself in the middle of a large field. As he scanned the field he saw dozens of bodies scattered across the ground, most of which were finders, but a few were exorcists. However, they all had Road's candles piercing their bodies. Matt began to run through the field calling out for Road, but he got no response. Then he heard the sound of gurgled laughter. He looked down to see an exorcist lying on the ground with several candles piercing his chest. Matt walked up to him picked up the body by the collar of his coat.

"Tell me where she is and I'll ease your passing exorcist" Matt said in anger.

"Probably dead" said the dying exorcist. "That damn Noah thought she could take on all of us with only those candles and umbrella. "

"Tell me where they went" Matt yelled shaking the exorcist.

"If you want to die with her so badly, she ran off that way" the exorcist weakly pointed behind Matt. Matt looked behind him to see that the valley dips down and out of sight before reaching the base of a large cliff. Matt turned back to see that the exorcist had died when he turned away. Matt then threw the body down and began to run towards the hill as he was about to reach the hillside when he saw Lero lying on the ground.

"Lero, where's Road" asked Matt as he approached the umbrella but got no response. He immediately picked up the umbrella and began to swing it violently until Lero opened his eyes.

"AHHH, don't kill me-Lero" screamed Lero. Then he saw who was holding him and gave a sigh of relief. "Oh it's only you-Lero."

"Lero, where's Road" Matt asked impatiently.

"All I remember is her falling off of me and me getting hit in the head by something-Lero." Matt then heard an explosion and ran to the hillside. Matt's eyes widened when he looked over the hill. There was a massive battle taking place, there were a few akuma fighting dozens of exorcists and finders. Then he saw her. Matt could barely make out Road among the people there, however, it was obvious to see that she was losing as the rest of the akuma were destroyed and the exorcists began to surround her.

"Lero, contact Sheril and Tyki. Tell them to get over here now. Use Road's door." Lero nodded and flew off towards the door. However, the door began to crumble away before Lero could enter.

"The door's destroyed-Lero" yelled Lero.

"Then find another way damn it" yelled Matt. He knew what it meant when Road's door broke. He turned around and saw that Road was hit and was staggering backwards. Then the exorcist that appeared to be carrying a short sword swung his arm back to strike her again.

Road stumbled backwards after being hit she saw that she was bleeding. She looked around her and saw that she was nearly surrounded.

"Damn it, I refuse to die here" Road said to herself, but she knew that she couldn't win, not against this many exorcists. She then saw the exorcist that just hit her swing his arm back ready to strike. Road fell to the ground and closed her eyes bracing herself for the impact of the hit. But after a moment there was no contact. She slowly opened her eyes, and then shot open when she saw who was standing in front of her. She recognized the long, grown out blonde hair and the black cloak.

"Matt" Road said silently. Matt stood in front of Road, his hand was grasping the sword of the exorcist.

"How did you" the exorcist stammered as he looked at Matt. He could see the absolute rage in Matt's blood red and black eyes. Then Matt tightened his grip around the sword shattering it. Matt's hand in one quick motion, punched the exorcist in the stomach sending him flying backwards.

"Road, stay here. I'll take care of the exorcists" said Matt without looking back at her.

"Matt, you can't fight off all of them" Road protested. "We should just retreat."

"No, the bastards need to pay for what they've done" said Matt then an exorcist from behind Road, tried to attack her without Road knowing. However, before he could attack Matt stood in front of Road and grabbed the exorcist's neck with his bandaged arm and broke his neck. He then threw the exorcist aside.

"I will not allow anyone to harm my sister" yelled Matt, and then vanished leaving a trail of crushed earth in his wake. Matt reappeared in front of another exorcist who didn't have time to defend himself. Matt punched the exorcist in the gut and the contact sounded like an explosion. The exorcist died on contact but was still sent flying knocking over several exorcists in the process. Two more exorcists came at him, one from behind and the other from in front. Matt quickly elbowed the exorcist behind him in the face, shattering his jaw. Fluently, Matt ducked as the other exorcist swung his weapon at Matt, who spun around tripping the exorcist then standing back up, grabbing the exorcist's leg, pulling him close, then punching him one last time in the chest which caused the exorcist to hit the ground leaving a small crater. A few exorcists that were running towards Matt immediately stopped in their tracks when they saw Matt take out those three exorcists with ease.

"What are we supposed to do" asked one of the exorcists, "I don't think we can take this guy."

"Don't worry thers's only one of him, we can take him" said another exorcist. As he said this several Madness clones emerged from the ground and began to attack the exorcists. Matt then left those exorcists to their fate. Matt turned his attention to the rest and raised his hand.

"Chains of Madness" Matt said to himself and chains burst from the ground managing to completely wrap around 4 exorcists. Matt then closed his hand and the chains retracted into the ground, killing the exorcists that were wrapped by them. It was at this time that Matt felt something pierce his right shoulder. He looked back to see what appeared to be a spear sticking out of his back. He quickly pulled it out and threw it another exorcist which was hit in the chest. Matt felt the pain of the attack but ignored it. He knew that he had to protect Road, so he continued to fight.

* * *

><p>The fighting continued for nearly an hour and the bodies of both finders and exorcists began to build up, however, there were still at least a dozen exorcists still fighting. To make matters worse, Matt had begun to sustain several injuries across his body. At one point he was cut in the side of his neck while trying to avoid a blade, another time, he was shot in the thigh by an armed finder. Matt used his invulnerability as much as he could but even so it wasn't enough.<p>

As Matt took out another exorcist he felt an arrow hit his chest. He looked down to see that the arrow had just missed his heart. Matt staggered backwards right into the spear that had hit him earlier. This time however, he was stuck in the middle of his back. He turned around and killed the exorcist who had stabbed him with a single punch. At that moment a second arrow struck Matt in the back. Matt fell to his stomach, which broke the arrow in his chest. Matt was slow to get up, he knew that he was losing this fight. Matt looked up and saw that Road was still sitting on the ground. He then looked back to his left arm. Remembering what Tyki had Sheril said about what that arm did when he was unconscious, he considered removing the seals. Matt reached to pull off one of the seals but one of the exorcists stepped on his hand preventing him from moving his hand. Matt looked up to see that the exorcist was grinning.

"What are you so happy about" asked Matt in an angry tone.

"Because I get to be the one who gets to finish you off" said the exorcist as he picked Matt up by the collar. The exorcist then lifted his weapon and stabbed Matt in the center of his chest. Matt then began to laugh which confused the exorcist.

"You? Kill me? HA! Don't delude yourself, it's going to take a lot more than these wounds to kill me and you sure as hell don't have the power to kill me." As Matt said this a Madness aura arm sprouted from the ground and wrapped itself around the exorcist which caused Matt to fall back down to the ground with the sword still piercing his chest. After a moment of struggling the arm tightened its grip and the sound of every bone in his body break.

Matt was slow to stand up, he could see that his vision was once again failing him as everything was becoming blurry, pain was coursing through his entire body. However, he was ready to fight, even if it cost him his life. Then he saw something he did not expect. The exorcists were fleeing. Matt turned around to see Tyki and Sheril standing directly behind him. There was an open ark gate behind them. Tyki and Sheril were shocked to see the condition Matt was in. Matt had several weapons sticking out of him that Matt never took out because of the constant fighting and he was covered in his own blood.

Matt did not say a word to them, instead he slowly limped past them and went directly to Road. When he reached Road he fell to a single knee, no longer able to stand. He placed a bloody hand on Road's cheek.

"Road, are you alright" Matt asked Road barely staying conscious.

"Yeah I'm fine. But don't worry about me Matt, what about you? You need medical attention" said Road, worried about Matt's injuries.

"Don't worry Road, I'm fine" Matt said with a warm smile. "I swear I will not let anything happen to my family, so long as I live." As Matt his hand dropped from Road's cheek, leaving a bloody handprint on her cheek. Matt then fell forward, past Road, and hit the ground.

Black Order post-battle report

On March 1, 100 finders and 30 exorcists, in accordance with the mission's objective, engaged the 9th apostle, Road Kamelot along with several akuma of varying levels. In the initial attack, 35 finders and 6 exorcists died in battle. Eventually, the 15th apostle, Matt entered the battle and engaged the remaining forces. At the end of the battle it was concluded that Matt had killed 40 finders and 10 exorcists. Remaining forces retreated when the 3rd and 4th apostles arrived. The conditions of the 9th and 15th apostles are unknown; however the 15th apostle was reported to have sustained severe injuries. The battle lasted approximately 2 hours. Out of the surviving exorcists, 2 returned in critical condition, while the rest returned with minor injuries.

Official records have listed "The Battle of the Plains" as the bloodiest battle of the war.

Official records have also listed the battle as the biggest military failure of the war.

**Thank you for reading! Please review. Chapter 31 coming soon!**

**I feel it's important to remember that I had mentioned that the Black Order had over 50 exorcists a few chapters back. I just wanted to clarify so you know why I could write in so many exorcists.**

**This was an interesting chapter to write. In the end I feel that the final product turned out pretty well, and I hope you agree. If I remember this chapter took about 1 ½ days to write, and I enjoyed every moment of it XD. Anyways, I'm probably going to wrap up this specific arc next chapter. Until next time, see ya! **


	31. Why we fight: A Noah's resolve

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt found himself back in his city of a mind. However something was different, for the first time it was actually dark. As he walked he heard a familiar voice echo around him.

"You know, you're reckless" said Majnun as he appeared in his shadow form.

"I did what I had to do Majnun" Matt said stubbornly.

"I know, but that doesn't change the fact that you're reckless. You knew from the beginning that you weren't going to win."

"Yes, but I always thought you enjoyed a challenge" Matt said with a grin.

"I know, but still, try not to do that again."

"I'll try."

"I suppose that's the best I can get from you" sighed Majnun. "But now it's time for you to wake up, there are people who want to see you again." Matt nodded and closed his eyes.

* * *

><p>Matt slowly opened his eyes to a familiar room. He was lying in his room back at the mansion, a place where in he recently was laying, right before he left to find Road. He lloked around and noticed that there were lots of medical equipment on either side of his bed. He leaned forward and lifted the blanket partially off him. He looked down to see that his entire torso, including his entire right arm and hand were covered in bandages. He had no idea what form he was in but as he tried to move his left arm he found it extremely difficult. He was in his white form. Strangely enough he didn't feel any real pain despite the heavy injuries he remembered receiving. As he stood up out of his bed the pain finally set staggered forward, nearly falling to the ground. He then began to leave the room. But before he could leave the door opened to his room and Tyki entered the room. Tyki stared at Matt, as if he was surprised to see him awake.<p>

"Hey Tyki" said Matt with a smile. Tyki stood there for a moment and then smiled, as if he was relieved of something.

"Hello Matt, it's good to see that you're finally awake" said Tyki warmly. "Matt, why don't you lay back down, you need your rest." Matt looked at Tyki with an upset look.

"But I don't want to, I want to see everyone" said Matt. He said everyone but he really just wanted to see Road, he wanted to make sure that she was alright as he couldn't remember much after Tyki and Sheril arrived in his fight against the exorcists.

"I'll tell you what" said Tyki, "I'll go get them and you lay back down. You really shouldn't be up.

"Fine" Matt said reluctantly and he sat down on his bed. A few moments passed and the door burst open revealing Sheril who was in total shock, which confused Matt.

"Matt, you're awake" said Sheril in a surprised tone.

"Yes, I'm awake." Next Road entered the room, she appeared to be fine which was a big relief for Matt. She walked up to Matt.

"So, you're awake" Road simply said in a soft voice.

"Why does everyone keep saying that" asked Matt, but he didn't get to say much as Road immediately punched him in the stomach which caused Matt to keel over. "What was that for" Matt asked in a surprised, yet upset tone.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again" yelled Road.

"I don't know what you're talking about, what happened" Matt asked, frantically trying to piece together what had happened.

"How can I explain this" Sheril said taking a step forward. "After the battle we brought you back here and gave you immediate medical attention but your wounds were extremely severe."

"Yeah, so what?" Matt did not understand what he was talking about. He knew he had injuries but he didn't know why it was such a big deal.

"We did our best to heal you but your heart stopped only a few hours after the fight. You've been thought to be dead for nearly 2 days. Tyki was coming to your room to remove you from the room so that we could bury you."

"Wait, how can that be? I was dead? Then how am I alive now?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure how you're alive" admitted Sheril.

"Well, it could be that your heart just went into a dormant mode which caused your heart beat to slow to the point that you would be mistaken for dead" said Tyki. Everyone stared at him in surprise. Tyki looked at everyone with a confused look. "What?"

"That was actually a really good theory" said Sheril. Matt nodded in agreement, and then turned his attention back to Road.

"Road, are you alright" asked Matt, referring to the battle.

"Yeah, I am fine. I only had a few cuts and bruises."

"That's good to hear" Matt said with a smile.

"You know Matt, you really are a reckless Noah" joked Tyki. "You have more scars than all of us combined."

"So? I get the job done. It doesn't matter if I should get hurt and besides you're the only one that has a scar besides me Tyki. Speaking of getting the job done, what happened to all those pieces of innocence that the exorcists were using?"

"We don't know, you were in such bad shape that we had to get you out of there immediately" said Sheril.

"So we should assume that they are still intact and being returned to the Black Order?"

"Yes, Lord Millennium hasn't mentioned anything about the innocence so it must have been retrieved."

"That sucks, that could've really turned the war to our favor" said Matt as he tried to stand up, but Sheril forced him to sit back down.

"Matt, you should probably rest for a bit, you really aren't in any condition to be moving around." Matt looked at Sheril, he wanted to do something but he knew that he was right. Matt simply nodded and lay back on his bed and closed his eyes. Tyki and Sheril left the room leaving just Road. She stood next to him silently for a moment.

"Hey Matt" Road said quietly.

"What's up" asked Matt with his eyes closed.

"Thanks for rescuing me."

"That's what family is for. Just don't punch me the next time, ok?" Road giggled a little.

"Sure thing." And with that said Road left the room.

* * *

><p>A week passed and Matt had almost fully recovered. Matt decided that he going to leave the house, but before he did he needed to replace the bandages and get his hair cut once again which was really annoying him. As Matt removed the bandages, he saw the massive scar that crossed his entire torso which was caused by Kanda in their last fight. There were stiches all over his body from his most recent injuries. He decided to go to London with Road and Tyki so he could move around again. He was going to meet them at a restaurant so that they could eat together there. As he walked, Matt eventually found himself in front of a very familiar restaurant. It was the same one that Matt and Road were in when he saw Allen, Lenalee, for the last time as a 'normal' human in their eyes. He was about to walk in when he saw a familiar face exit the restaurant. Matt began to quickly walk away but she saw him and gave chase. Matt ducked into an alleyway and to his disgust it was a dead end.<p>

"Hold it right there, Noah" said Lenalee, her innocence activated.

"It's good to see you again Lenalee. I take it you received my message that I sent you" said Matt as he turned to face her. Lenalee was surprised to see the amount of bandages that covered Matt's body.

"So the report was true. They said that you were severely injured in the battle. Some of the survivors believed that you died after the fight" said Lenalee, ignoring what Matt had just said.

"Yes well, if I could, I would've killed them all if I had the chance. By the way, I'm not here to fight, so you can deactivate your innocence." Lenalee did so but she was clearly upset at Matt.

"I don't understand Matt, if you wanted to be my friend then you shouldn't have killed all of those exorcists. That's not how you make friends." Matt became very serious when she said this.

"Tell me Lenalee, what do those exorcists mean to you" asked Matt.

"They are my precious family" Lenalee answered, not understanding where Matt was going with this.

"Then tell me, are you willing to fight, even kill to protect that family?"

"Yes, of course I am" said Lenalee.

"Then you should understand why I did what I did. Road is my sister, she is a member of my family. Your family attacked mine and I defended her. That is why I fight. I fight to protect my family." Lenalee just stared at him. Despite the fact that she hated what Matt did, she actually understood and sympathized with what he was saying, but she was not going to admit that to him.

"But you said you wanted to be my friend" said Lenalee without thinking. Matt began to walk past her.

"Lenalee, it is true that I wished to be your friend. However, as long as our families fight that will never become a reality. Now if you'll excuse me, I have places to be." Matt then left the alley.

Matt entered a new restaurant and saw Road and Tyki sitting down. Matt walked over to them and took a seat next to Road.

"You're late" said Road.

"I'm sorry" Matt said with a smile. "I got distracted." Matt decided not to mention Lenalee, he had realized that the hope of becoming friends with any exorcist was impossible, and that he knew that so long as he lived he would protect his family from those who would seek to harm them.

**Thank you for reading. Please review. Chapter 32 coming soon!**

**And with that, this current arc which will be called "Family bonds" is now finished. And I must ask, what did you think? This was an interesting arc to create and in the end I'm happy with how it turned out. The next arc will begin soon. There may be one or two filler chapters but I haven't decided yet. Until next time!**


	32. The Broken Seal part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

The day after Matt ran into Lenalee, Matt found himself back in the Kamelot mansion's library reading a book reading a book about curses. He knew that there would be nothing in there about his arm but over the last week he had become extremely interested in curses. He was curious about how curses were created and more importantly how to remove a curse. As he read, he looked at his left arm. It was still extremely difficult to move in his white form so he spent most of his time in his Noah form. He heard a few bangs coming from elsewhere in the house that began to irritate him but he decided to ignore it. A few minutes later and the loud banging was still going on so Matt went to investigate. He was walking in the direction of the noise when he ran into Tyki.

"Tyki, what on earth is that noise" asked Matt as he approached him.

"That is the sound of reconstruction" said Tyki. "They are repairing the conference room that you sort of destroyed a week ago."

"You mean the place where I was shot and my arm became cursed" Matt corrected him. "I had nothing to do with that, I was unconscious, remember?"

"Of course I was just pulling your leg a little" said Tyki.

"Wait, why hasn't this been done yet? It's been over a week" Matt pointed out.

"Yes well the crew that does this for Sheril was on a vacation or something so they weren't able to work on it and besides they had to make sure that the area was safe to enter." Matt looked at Tyki with a confused look. "Come with me, I'll show you." Matt followed Tyki one of the doors that entered the conference room. When he opened it Matt was shocked at what he saw.

Despite the fact that the area was covered with scaffolding, Matt could clearly see heavy damage across the walls and floor of the large room. However what caught his attention the most was a large gaping hole in the floor that led like a trail from one point of the room to the door where they were standing. In some ways it looked as if that area had been eaten away. Matt continued to stare at the hole which caught Tyki's attention.

"See where the hole starts" Tyki asked pointing to the furthest end of the hole. "That's where you were laying on the ground after you were shot. Your aura was extremely destructive, as you can see the entire room was affected. But the aura also began to devour the area around you which is what forced us to move you. We couldn't actually touch your arm so it dragged along the floor leaving the larger hole you see know. When we reached the door we decided to seal your arm off, that's why it ended there." Matt stood there looking at both his arm and the large hole as Tyki spoke. Matt couldn't even begin to imagine what his arm did to cause this, despite what Tyki said.

"I don't understand how could my aura do this? It's never done this before" said Matt.

"The Earl said he'd look into it."

"Wait, when did the Earl find out?"

"We told him while you were unconscious. Apparently, this has never happened before so it may take some time before we can actually know for sure what's going on."

"This sucks" said Matt as he turned around and walked away. Tyki followed him.

"Hey Matt, I was actually on my way to find you when you ran into me" said Tyki.

"Oh really, why is that?"

"Well, you have a new mission the Earl contacted me just a little while ago." Matt looked at Tyki in disbelief.

"You're kidding right? I was hoping to get at least a little bit more time off before going back into combat. I mean for goodness sake I'm still covered on bandages, my body is still sore from the fight!"

"I know, I tried my best to convince the Earl to hold off but he said he needs you to head out now. I guess we made a grave error in judgment for leaving the innocence intact in your last fight. So we need to do our best to actually do prevent anymore innocence from going to the Black Order."

"Damn it, fine where's Road, she's coming with me."

"She is already aware and she is preparing as we speak." Matt began to walk away but Tyki grabbed his shoulder. "Be sure to bring extra seals, if those were to break, it's hard to say if you will be able to control it." Matt simply nodded and walked away.

Matt met up with Road a few minutes later; he was wearing fairly casual clothes along with his usual black cloak.

"Road, do you know where you we're going" asked Matt as he walked up to her.

"Yeah, we're going to St. Malo, France."

"Wait, you mean that old fort city next to the ocean" asked Matt.

"Yes. Apparently there's some innocence located within the fort itself, so we're going to go there and destroy it. Who knows we might even get to kill some exorcists in the process."

"Well knowing my luck I'm sure we will" said Matt, Road laughed a little in agreement. "But I'd rather get this over with so let's go." Road nodded and she summoned her door.

* * *

><p>The two Noah arrived inside St. Malo near mid-day. The two looked around and realized that they had no idea where to look.<p>

"This place is pretty big Matt, it may take a while for us to find it" said Road.

"Perhaps, but I'm sure the exorcists will be here so we could let them find it then we can take them out" said Matt.

"That's fine but they could come and leave at any point and we would never know, there is more than one entrance you know."

"I'll watch over the main entrance from the roof of the keep" said Matt pointing to the large house-like tower. "You can watch over the wall from the rooftops."

"What about the ocean? They could come from there" Road pointed out.

"Don't worry, I think I can watch the entire area from the keep."

"Ok, what will be the signal for when we find the innocence" asked Road.

"For me, an earthquake. For you, just toss a few candles my way." They both nodded in agreement and began to part ways. "Road one more thing" said Matt before they got to far apart.

"What's up?"

"Stay safe" Matt said with a smile.

"Don't let that one time fool you I can handle myself" said Road in a playful but upset tone. "But thanks."

"No problem, you're right though" laughed Matt and a stone rose out of the ground and lifted Matt to the top of the keep.

* * *

><p>It started to get late, the sun was about to set when the exorcists finally arrived through the main entrance. Matt stayed well hidden on the rooftop of the keep as he closely watched them. There were 4 exorcists, but he recognized none of them, which upset Matt. He really wanted to kill the surviving exorcists from his last battle. There were also a few finders but he didn't care too much about them. He watched as they entered the keep and after a few minutes they exited the keep. Matt watched as the group talked then he saw what he was looking for. There was a quick glimmer of green that came from one of the finders. The group began to leave towards the main gate. Matt stood up and aimed himself at the finder. Once he lined himself up he jumped. As he jumped he turned his right arm into a sword and prepared to hit the finder. After a quick fall Matt made landed on the finder, knocking him on to the ground. As the finder fell Matt stabbed him in the back and pushed off the finder doing a back flip and landed on his feet and placing his bandaged left hand on the ground. Everyone was startled by the sudden attack but was quick to activate their innocence. One carried a short sword, the second carried a sledgehammer, and the third a spiked ball and chain.<p>

"Damn it" said one of the exorcists, "it's him, the Noah that killed 10 exorcists at the Battle of the Plains."

"No way, I heard he was dead" said another.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I think it would be in your best interest to just leave the innocence and leave" said Matt.

"You're kidding right" said the first exorcist. "We will never let you destroy the innocence, and besides you need to pay for killing our comrades."

"Many have tried, but none have succeeded in doing so" Matt said in a serious tone then the ground began to shake. "I'll give you the same warning as I give others, come at me with all you have otherwise you won't survive."

Elsewhere, Road was looking out at the town when she felt the house she was standing on begin to shake. She recognized the signal and began to roof hop back to where Matt was.

Matt stared down the exorcists waiting for them to make the first move. Eventually, the exorcist made the first move. However, the exorcist was much faster than he had originally anticipated, and when the exorcist thrust his sword at Matt, he lifted his arms on instinct to defend himself. When Matt did this he realized that he could dodge the attack so he went to move out of the way. When Matt moved, he lowered his arms a bit and the sword cut across his left arm. Matt quickly countered and with his sword arm he quickly stabbed the exorcist in the arm and then kicked the exorcist away.

Matt looked down at his left arm and he saw something he did not want to see. Several of the seals that covered his arm had been damaged and were quickly burning up. One by one the seals burned away until there were none left. Then a pitch black Madness aura began to eat away the bandages on his arm. It was only a split second until the bandages were gone revealing a pitch black arm with a bright, pure white cross on the back of his lower arm that covered the area that was cut by Winters Socalo.

**I hope you enjoyed reading. Please review. Chapter 33 coming soon!**

**This will be the first chapter of a short arc called "The Cursed Arm". So I hope you enjoy it! I found this chapter fairly difficult to make. By the way you should image search St. Malo if you've never been (which I have been to), it's a pretty cool city. I'll probably write a few more chapters in France because I know several good locations to write about.** **Until next time!**


	33. The Broken Seal part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt stared at his arm. It was the first time he had seen his arm since it was shot. His arm was covered with his aura but it was much darker than what it usually was, and the cross on his scar glowed brightly. Matt only had a moment before the aura began moving on its own. Tentacle like arms began to branch of his arm and began to enter the ground. Matt watched as the ground below his feet began to deteriorate. The exorcists stood there watching in shock.

"What's up with his arm" asked one of the exorcists.

"I don't know but he's distracted, now is the perfect time to strike" said the exorcist with the sledgehammer and he charged at matt. Before he could even get close a new tentacle extended form Matt's arm and grabbed the exorcist's wrist forcing him to drop his hammer. He tried to pull his arm away from it but the aura would not leave. The exorcist, now beginning to panic, grabbed the aura tentacle and as he grabbed it the aura spread to his other hand. The aura then quickly began to consume the exorcist. The exorcist felt extreme pain as the aura quickly spread across his body. Eventually the exorcist fell to the ground and the aura completely consumed him until there was nothing less.

Matt watched in horror as immediately after finishing the exorcist it quickly expanded and grabbed the other two exorcists and devouring both. The aura then began to retract; as it did Matt began to feel an extreme pain in his arm. He let out a scream of pain as the cross on his arm began to glow even brighter. Matt fell to his knees in pain as the aura returned to his arm. Suddenly hundreds of aura tentacles flew out of his arm and began devouring everything in the surrounding area, as it did the pain for Matt increased.

Road finally reached the battlefield and was horrified at the sight she was seeing. Matt's arm was literally devouring the entire city. She saw that Matt was lying on the ground and she ran over to him, avoiding the tentacles that appeared to ignore her. She reached Matt who was clearly in immense pain.

"Matt what happened" Road asked frantically.

"Road…place new seals on my arm" Matt managed to say, despite the pain. Road reached into his pocket of his cloak and grabbed several seals. As she placed one there was a horribly loud screech. Road discovered that the screech was coming from the aura itself. As she placed more and more seals on his arm, the screech got worse as the aura slowly began to retract back to his arm. After a moment the aura returned to its original form around his arm and Road quickly wrapped new bandages around his arm and placed the remaining seals on top of the bandages.

Matt was breathing deeply as the pain slowly began to fade. After a few minutes, the pain had faded away and Matt was finally able to move again. Despite this Road helped Matt sit up.

"Matt are you all right" Road asked still worried.

"I think so" said Matt as he composed himself. "Thanks Road, I don't think I could've taken any more of that."

"Matt, where are all the exorcists? Did they get away?"

"No, they were eaten by the aura" said Matt, the memory of it made him feel sick.

"Eaten? How could that be" said Road, surprised about Matt's choice of words.

"I don't know, but I know what I saw, the aura completely devoured them. It left nothing but the innocence that they were carrying" said Matt as he pointed to the weapons lying on the ground. Road immediately walked over to them, destroyed the weapons and the innocence that resided in them. She turned back to Matt who was now standing, she watched as he walked up to a dead finder and began to search the body.

"Damn it" said Matt as he finished looking.

"What's wrong" asked Road.

"This was the finder that was carrying the innocence, and now it's gone. One of the other finders must have taken it and ran."

"That's fine, we destroyed 3 pieces anyways so it works out in our favor" said Road trying to cheer up Matt. But she could see that he was still bothered. "Matt what's wrong? We won today" said Road as she walked up to Matt.

"It's this damn arm" Matt said. "I don't think I can live with it."

"What are you saying" asked Road.

"I'm saying that because of the aura surrounding my arm, I can't control it when the seals are broken. You can see for yourself it's destructive abilities. It's far too powerful and something like that needs to be controlled otherwise I'll just end up hurting those I care about."

"I know Matt, but we'll figure it out, I'm sure that the Earl will come up with something eventually" said Road trying to cheer him up.

"I don't think I can wait that long Road. Something needs to be done soon." Matt looked over to Road and realized that she was troubled by what he was saying. "But you're right, I'm sure we'll figure something out" said Matt with a fake smile, he hated seeing Road upset like this. "For now let's just go home." Road nodded and summoned her door.

* * *

><p>The two arrived back at the Kamelot mansion and almost as if they were waiting for them the two ran into Tyki.<p>

"So how did it go" asked Tyki with a smile but walked straight past him, not answering his question. Tyki then looked at Road. "What's up with him?"

"The seals were broken" Road simply said and Tyki's face then became saddened.

"I see."

"Yeah, Matt is taking it pretty hard."

"I bet he is, what he saw wasn't probably easy to see."

"I should've stayed with him instead of splitting up. Maybe then I could've prevented this."

"Perhaps, but what's done is done, nothing can change that" said Tyki.

"I know. Hey Tyki, why were you waiting for us?"

"Oh that's right, there was something I wanted to tell Matt but he kind of stormed off before I could really say anything."

"Really? What was it you were going to tell him?"

"Well the Earl may have found a solution to his cursed arm." Road's eyes widened when Tyki said this.

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

"Then why the hell are you standing around here talking to me" yelled Road. "Go tell him!" Tyki nodded and ran after Matt with Road right behind him.

Finder's post mission report

Three exorcists and 2 finders entered St. Malo, after retrieving the innocence there; the group was attacked by the 15th apostle, who was rumored to have died. The exorcists were quick to engage the Noah. However, upon striking his left arm, a strange aura that was not in any previous reports emerged and devoured the exorcists. The piece of innocence was returned to headquarters but lost 3 other pieces in the process.

The following day, the Black Order higher ups gave an official announcement in regards to the 15th apostle. The message was delivered by Malcolm Rouvelier: "The 15th apostle of the Noah Clan has been officially labeled an extremely high threat to the Order. As of now, only exorcists whose synch rate is above 80% are allowed to attack the Noah, unless otherwise instructed. If an exorcist's synch rate is below that mark, they are to immediately evacuate the area and abandon any mission that is within the Noah's vicinity."

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 34 coming soon!**

**This chapter was really hard to write. The idea of the cursed arm was extremely difficult to write even though I knew what I wanted to write. So I apologize if the chapter didn't seem to come out well. But I shall not dwell on that! The story must continue after all. I will be finishing this arc with the next chapter (it's a short one, I know). However, I do have plans for future chapters. Until next time!**


	34. The Cursed Arm

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt stared at Tyki as he told Matt that the Earl may have a cure for his cursed arm.

"What are you saying" asked Matt.

"I'm saying that the Earl may have found a solution to your curse arm" said Tyki. A look of hope entered Matt's eyes.

"Then why are we still here let's get going. Road, can you open your door back to the ark" asked Matt.

"Sure thing Matt" said Road and she summoned her door. The three Noah quickly entered the door which closed behind them.

* * *

><p>The three entered a large room filled with phones. They could see the Earl walking around the room answering many of the phones that were ringing.<p>

"Lord Millennium, I received your message" said Matt walking up to him. "Is it true that you can fix my arm?" The Earl didn't seem to notice Matt as he was talking on one of the phones. "Lord Millennium" said Matt, trying to see if the Earl was listening, which he apparently wasn't. Matt then became impatient and a small stone slab came out of the ground and hit the Earl in the back of the head which caused the Earl to turn around.

"What is it my child. I heard you, but have to give me more than 5 seconds before throwing a rock at my head" said the Earl as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Fine, next time I'll wait 10 seconds" Matt said sarcastically. "Can you fix my arm or what?"

"Oh yes that. Well I have had the skulls working on it and they think that they have figured out what is exactly wrong with your arm and better yet how to fix it."

"Well what are we waiting for" said Matt impatiently.

"All in due time, let's go down to the lab and pay the skulls a visit."

The 4 of them entered a large lab with plenty of equipment. However, the most noticeable feature in the room was the large akuma egg in the back of the room. They approached on of the skulls.

"What can I help you with" asked the skull.

"We're here about Matt's cursed arm" said the Earl.

"Of course, we've been expecting you, come with me." The skull led them to a table. On it was a few beakers and two syringes. One was filled with a dark green liquid, the other was a dark red liquid.

"What's in the syringe" asked Matt.

"All in due time" said the skull. "But first let me explain to you what your cursed arm is." Matt nodded and the skull began to speak. "Well you see the aura surrounding your arm is a mutation of your usual Madness Aura. This aura has become parasitic and it not only devours its host, but also anything around it."

"Wait what did you mean by devour its host" asked Matt.

"It's just as I said, the aura has been attempting to devour you. However, it has been unable to. And that leads us to the cross mark on your arm. Apparently you have a few fragments of innocence in your arm that has literally been acting as a shield against the aura."

"How ironic, the innocence is protecting you" said Tyki but Matt punched him in the arm; he didn't need Tyki to tell him that.

"I don't understand. Innocence is supposed to hurt us, not help" said Road, Matt nodded in agreement.

"Well, we don't believe that the innocence is doing this because it wants to protect Matt. Rather, the innocence is more focused on the parasitic aura that is trying to destroy it and therefore has stopped trying to harm Matt."

"So what you are saying here is that if the aura goes away then" said Matt but he was interrupted by the skull.

"Then the innocence will begin to exorcize your Noah."

"This seems like a lose-lose situation" said Tyki.  
>"It would be, except we have developed a new kind of seal that will isolate the innocence, making it impossible to do anything to you. However, this is just a prototype seal and it would most likely break after a little while."<p>

"That's fine. So where are the seal" asked Matt.

"Right here" said the skull as he picked up the syringe with the dark red liquid.

"Wait, it's a liquid? I've never heard of anything like that before" said Tyki.

"That is correct. The liquid is designed to find the innocence and then form a barrier around the innocence."

"That's great and all but what's with the other syringe" asked Matt.

"That is for the parasitic aura. This syringe is designed to kill that aura." The skull was about to explain it in greater detail but Matt raised his hand.

"Don't explain, I won't understand. As long as it works I don't care."

"Very well. Shall we begin then" asked the skull. Matt nodded and raised his arm out which the skull then grabbed and aimed the red syringe at his arm.

"Wait, you're not going to remove the seals already there" asked Matt.

"No, right now those seals are there to prevent the aura from causing any external damage" said the skull as he plunged the syringe into Matt's arm in the spot where his scar is. Matt felt a quick pain, and then it got worse.

"What the hell" yelled Matt. "Why is this hurting so much?" The skull said nothing as he immediately grabbed the green syringe and injected it into Matt causing Matt even more pain. Then he heard a familiar screech. The aura that was being held despite being held by the seal began to give off a piercing screech that nearly deafened everyone in the room. It only lasted a few seconds then it stopped and Matt's arm felt like a massive weight lifted off his arm.

Matt lifted his arm and waved it around and everyone looked at Matt in a weird way.

"Matt, what are you doing" asked Road.

"Just moving my arm around it's much lighter than it used to be."

"Let's have a look at that arm then" said the skull as he grabbed Matt's arm again and began pulling off the seals. After a moment, the seals and bandages were off and Matt stared at his arm with a little surprise. The aura around his arm was completely gone; however his arm was now the same pitch black color as the aura itself. The cross that was on his arm had changed from white to a dark red color.

"What's up with this? Why is the color of my arm so dark" asked Matt.

"Well, it's possible that it is a scar left by the parasitic aura. Tell me Matt, when your seals were broken did you feel any pain" asked the skull.

"Yes, it hurt a lot. How did you know that the seals broke?"

"I could tell by the seals that I took off" explained the skull. "Anyways, that pain was caused by the parasitic aura. It had begun to devour your arm, leaving your arm in this state."

"So is he fit for duty" asked the Earl. "Is there anything stopping him from fighting?"

"From watching him move his arm he should be just fine. He can resume his missions whenever you like."

"That's great to hear because I have a new mission for him."

"Wait, what" asked Matt. "I only just got back."

"Well we were going to bring you back to deal with your arm anyways then send you back into the field."

"What could be so important that needs my attention so quickly" asked Matt.

"Well, there's a large Black Order stronghold located in France that I need you to destroy."

"Really, and what is this stronghold called" asked Matt.

"The monastery fortress called Mont St. Michel."

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 35 coming soon!**

**That ends this arc that I am calling "the cursed arm". It was short I know but I hope you enjoyed it! Even though this arc was difficult to write I really did enjoy writing this chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it. I still have plenty more to go with this story so I can't wait to show you. Until next time!**


	35. The Seige of Mont Saint Michel part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt, Road, Tyki and the Earl stood at a large table in one of the many rooms in the ark. In the center of the table was large model of an island with a massive monastery on its summit at the base of the mountain was a large wall and there were houses that lined up as they reached the base of the monastery.

"What are we looking at here" Matt asked the Earl as he looked at the model.

"This is the place you will be attacking" said the Earl.

"Ok, so you want us to walk in there and destroy this place right?"

"That's correct" said the Earl. "But it's not as easy as it might look."

"What do you mean? The place is covered with stone. I can just destroy it like I did the Black Order's old headquarters."

"It's not so simple Matt. This mountain is an island located in a large bay that covers any and all entrances during high tide. And we all know that you can't manipulate anything that is covered by large bodies of water."

"So we just open a portal in the city."

"No we can't, the area is too small for me to open a portal and because Road's never been there her doors are useless."

"So then what are we supposed to do wait until low tide?"

"Pretty much, but it has to be at a certain time" said the Earl.

"Why is that" asked Road.

"Because everyone there must die, you must enter the fortress at the right point so that when high tide comes the water will cut off their escape route."

"That's pretty cold" said Matt.

"Is it a problem?"

"Not at all" Matt said with a smile.

"Once you're done killing everyone there I want you to destroy it."

"Sure thing, but I have a better idea" said Matt.

"And what is that?"

"Give me a small army of akuma, they can fly over there and just kill them, while Road and I wait on shore for any stragglers."

"What about me" asked Tyki, even though he didn't seem to care if he was involved or not.

"Do we really need you for this one" asked Matt. "I think Road and I can handle something like this, I doubt the people defending it will give us much trouble."

"That's true and besides I need you to handle something for me" said the Earl.

"What is it" asked Tyki.

"I'll tell you after we finish things here" said the Earl. The conversation only lasted a few more minutes. During that time the Earl gave specific details about the fortress. "One last thing" said the Earl as they finished up. "This fortress was chosen by the Black Order for a reason. I have tried to attack it many times with many level 1 and 2 akuma but it has never fallen. If things start to go bad don't hesitate to get involved yourself." Matt and Road nodded and left the room.

"Hey Road, I'm going to go on ahead and check this place out from a distance. Can you collect the akuma and meet up with me in about 2 hours" asked Matt.

"Sure thing" said Road and she wandered off. At the same time an ark gate opened and Matt entered it.

* * *

><p>Matt found himself on a flat open plain. He looked around for a moment and saw nothing. Matt began to believe that the gate brought him to the wrong place. He turned around, about to enter the gate, then he saw something on the horizon. He could see it clear as day, a lone mountain with a large church standing at its summit with a large spire coming from the building. Even from this distance which matt deemed to be at least 2 miles (3km) he could see the fortress extremely clearly. Matt eventually found himself about half a mile away from the fortress and it was even more imposing at this distance. Matt stared at it in total awe. Then he heard laughter.<p>

"You really like that place don't you" said an evil sounding voice. Matt turned around to see his shadow develop eyes and a mouth, and then rise from the ground.

"Majnun" said Matt as he scanned the shadow figure. "This…is new. I don't think you've ever done this before."

"Indeed, this would be the first time" said Majnun.

"Since when have you been able to do this?"

"Since about…" Majnun looked at his shadowy hand as if he was holding a pocket watch and stared at it for a moment. "One minute ago."

"Seriously" said Matt giving him a look of disbelief.

"Yep, apparently I've been able to manifest myself for a while, I just didn't know."

"You're not all that bright are you?"

"Quiet you. You wouldn't have any power if I didn't tell you so I obviously know something" said Majnun.

"Fair enough" said Matt as he turned back to the fortress.

"I'll say it again. You really like that place don't you" said Majnun. Matt smiled.

"Indeed, I don't think I want to destroy it."

"So you're willing to defy the Earl's orders? He'll see that as you betraying him, and the consequences would be severe." Matt looked at Majnun with a confused look.

"I never said I wouldn't obey the Earl" Matt said then he grinned. "I don't want to destroy it because I want it for myself." Majnun stared at Matt then began to laugh.

"Of course what could I be thinking" said Majnun, a bit sarcastically, as he finished laughing. "Well I think things have just gotten a bit more interesting. I look forward to seeing how this one plays out" said Majnun his shadow returned to the ground and reformed Matt's shadow. At the same time a massive ark gate opened and Road walked out with a lollipop in her hand. Her eyes widened when she saw the fortress.

"Wow, this place is bigger than I expected. The model the Earl had doesn't give this place justice" said Road as she walked up to Matt.

"Indeed" said Matt. "By the way Road, where are all the akuma?"

"I didn't forget them" said Road as dozens of level 2 and level 1 akuma came pouring out of the gate. Matt turned to the akuma.

"Listen up, there has been a change of plan" said Matt. Everyone, including Road looked at Matt in confusion. "As of now your orders are to kill everyone inside the fortress, but you are not allowed to destroy the fortress itself."

"What are you saying Matt" asked Road.

"I've decided I want this place for my own. I figure, why should I let such an amazing structure go to waste?" Road giggled a little at what Matt said.

"Alright, that's fine by me. Though if you ask me I have no idea what you would do with something like this."

"And that's why I didn't ask you" said Matt. Then he signaled for the akuma to attack and they went flying towards the fortress. At the same time two stone throne-like chairs came out of the ground and Road and Matt each sat down in one of the seats.

"So you're going to let them fight? Usually you would want to be in the fight."

"I do, but as you can plainly see, there's water surrounding the fortress and I can't get over there right now" Matt said with a frown. "But I think I'll enjoy the view and wait it out until the akuma either win or lose" said Matt as he put his hands behind his head, the sound of fighting could be both seen and heard from this distance.

After about an hour and a half, the sound of fighting stopped. Matt looked on with anticipation for the surviving akuma to return but none did.

"It looks like the akuma lost" said Road as she finished her lollipop.

"That's fine, I didn't expect them to win" said Matt as he stood up and his chair sunk back into the ground. "Akuma are truly worthless sometimes. But I should look at the bright side of this."

"And what's that" asked Road as she stood up after him.

"It means I get to have some fun today" Matt said with a smile and he began to walk to the shore.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 36 coming soon!**

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Mainly because Mont Saint Michel is a real place (and seriously, if you don't know what this place is I really recommend you google search it. Words don't give this place enough justice. When I wrote the part where Matt first saw Mont Saint Michel I tried to convey how I first saw it when I visited the abbey, which I hope I could convey. Anyways, I could talk about how great this place then this chapter would go on for much, much longer than it should. Until next time! **


	36. The Seige of Mont Saint Michel part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt walked up to the beach; the tide had begun to go out revealing an almost natural causeway that led to the fortress that was still a half mile away (.8km). After a moment of watching the tide quickly receded past the fortress. Matt then began to walk in the path.

"Hey Matt, should we get more akuma" asked Road as she caught up to him.

"No need, I doubt they'll put up that much of a fight" said Matt as he continued to approach the fortress.

"I suppose you're right" said Road. At that moment a large cannonball hit the ground only about 2 yards (1.8m) away from them. Matt looked briefly at the ball that had just skipped past them and turned his attention back to the fort.

"You think that they meant to miss? Or is their aim really that bad" asked Matt as another cannonball landed nearly missed them.

"I think they just have bad aim" grinned Road. The two continued to walk cannonballs missing them by varying lengths but all the time not even flinching to them. After a few minutes the two finally reached the small gate to the city. Matt walked up and placed his right hand on the and after just a moment the wooden gate splintered into pieces. There waiting for him were a line of finders, all armed with guns. They immediately began to open fire at the exorcist but a large stone wall rose out of the ground and blocked every shot. Immediately after the shots stopped the wall quickly fell back into the ground and Matt charged at them, his right arm turned into a sword. Matt quickly took care of the finders that guarded the gate and he retracted the stone sword revealing his hand.

"Hey Matt" said Road as she entered the fort. "Why didn't you change your left arm into a sword as well? Usually you do."

"That's a good question. It doesn't look like my stone armor surrounds my left arm anymore. I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that it is cursed" said Matt as he looked at his left hand for a moment then looked up the path that leads further into the fort. "But now is not the time to worry about that we need to finish up here." Matt then began to follow the path. After just a brief moment of walking the two approached a drawbridge that blocked the path that led further into the fort.

"Another" asked Road in disbelief. "How many gates are in this place?"

"Who knows, but it it's not like this can stop me" said Matt and two stone spikes shot out of the ground and hit the chains that kept the gate up. The chains broke and the drawbridge fell to the ground revealing an iron gate behind that.

"Seriously" said Road in an even more disbelieved voice, which caused Matt to laugh.

"It's almost like they don't want us to get in" said Matt as he grabbed part of the iron gate with both hands. After a moment the iron began to creek and break apart.

"I didn't know you could manipulate iron" said Road who was a bit surprised.

"I'll be honest with you, neither did I" said Matt. "I figured that iron comes from the ground therefore I can manipulate it, I guess I was right."

"And what would have happened if it didn't work?"

"I would have" said Matt as he thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure. Probably just bring down the entire gate itself and the building on top of it and just have some akuma rebuild it."

"That's pretty crude" Road said with a smile. Matt grinned back and began to walk into the village that was part of the fort.

They met almost no resistance as the path led followed the side of the mountain then turn back around to go up. After a few minutes of walking the two finally reached a massive double door.

"I think this is the entrance to the abbey" said Matt as he looked up at the massive doors."

"Must be" agreed Road.

"Hey Road, can you go check out the rest of the town, I think I can handle things here."

"No fair, I want to play to" complained Road.

"I know, I'll make sure to keep a few alive just for you" said Matt.

"You promise?"

"Of course. Why would I lie to you?" Road thought about it for a moment almost as if to try to find a reason, which sort of bothered Matt.

"Nope" said Road after a moment of thinking.

"That response took longer than it should have" said Matt.

"I was just teasing" giggled Road and she walked off along the side of the stone wall that was part of the abbey's entrance.

"Of course you were" Matt muttered to himself and he approached the doors. As he approached the doors he noticed that one of the two doors was opened slightly. He pushed open the heavy door and began to walk up even more stairs. Matt entered a large room; to Matt's surprise they were completely empty. As he walked through he saw another open door leading back outside. He walked through the door to see a large curved staircase that led to the abbey. Across the stairs were pieces of destroyed akuma and clothes from dead finders. As he reached the top he even found the clothes that belonged to an exorcist. He looked over and saw the entrance to the actual abbey that rested at the summit of the mountain. Matt walked up and pushed the door open. As he walked in he looked around the large chapel. As he scanned the room he saw 2 people, which Matt could tell were exorcists, standing at the opposite end of the room where the spire began. Matt began to walk towards them when they noticed Matt.

"Good afternoon exorcists" said Matt, his voice echoing throughout the hall. "I must say I didn't expect to see anyone here."

"Were you the one who sent those akuma Noah" asked one of the exorcists.

"I may have been" said Matt playing it off as if it were nothing.

"Why you son of a" said the other exorcist as he activated his innocence and tried to charge at Matt but the other exorcist stopped him. "Hey why did you stop me?"

"You know the orders that all exorcists were given. Any exorcist with a synch rate under 80% can't attack him."

"But my synch rate is 78% I can help you" said the exorcist.

"No you can't, follow orders and get out of here, inform headquarters that we have lost control of Mont Saint Michel to the Noah of Madness."

"But what about you?"

"I'll be fine, just go I'll distract him" said the other exorcist as he placed two ordinary gloves on his hands. He activated his innocence and the gloves transformed into large metal gloves. The exorcist then charged at Matt just stood there as the exorcist punched him in the gut which sent Matt crashing into the wall behind him and he slumped over. The exorcist then turned to the other, "Go get out of here." The exorcist nodded and ran out of the door that Matt entered. The exorcist turned his attention back to Matt who was quietly laughing. Matt lifted himself back up and took a few steps from away from the wall. The exorcist saw that there was stone crumbling around the area where he had hit Matt.

"So you're a close combat fighter" said Matt. "What's your name exorcist?"

"Jason Meriwheather" said the exorcist. And Matt gave him a warm smile even though his eyes were closed.

"Well it was very nice to meet you Jason. I hope you put up a good fight." As Matt finished speaking he opened his eyes revealing that his left eye color had changed from gold to red and the white of his eye changed to black. Before Jason could move Matt turned to smoke and vanished. Jason, instead of panicking closed his eyes and began to concentrate. Matt appeared behind him, his right arm in the form of a sword and began to attack Jason. However Jason quickly turned around and punched Matt in the chest sending Matt flying back, breaking many of the benches within the hall. Matt faced Jason who saw that both of his eyes were gold again.

"What's wrong? Giving up so soon" Jason taunted.

"Hardly, but you were certainly the first to ever stop that attack so congratulations to you" said Matt. "I wonder if I use that form if it would be a fair fight" Matt asked himself.

"What are you talking about" Jason said impatiently.

"Oh I was just wondering if I should use my ultimate form to fight you in hand to hand combat."

"I think I can take you. I'm the best hand to hand fighter in the Order."

"Very well, I hope you know what you're getting yourself into" said Matt as a black aura surrounded him. After a moment, the aura dispersed and Matt's blonde hair grew out again and both of his eyes had changed to red with the white of his eye turned to black. Matt grinned at Jason as he walked up to him and raised his fists. The two stared each other down for a moment before Matt made the first move and tried to punch Jason in the stomach. Jason however had fast reflexes, he grabbed Matt twisted him around and punched him the back. Matt went flying through one of the back doors and landed on a stone courtyard at the edge of the mountain cliff. Matt rolled across the ground before recovering. Jason rushed after Matt and took a swing at Matt as he recovered. Matt however, managed to grab Jason's arm. A single Madness Chain emerged from the ground and wrapped around his left arm.

"I thought you said you would fight me hand to hand" said Jason as Matt grabbed the chain.

"Yeah about that…I lied" said Matt as he pulled the chain which ripped Jason's arm off. Jason screamed in pain and tried to hit Matt again. But Matt easily dodged the attack then grabbed his second arm. A new chain came out of the ground and wrapped around Jason's arm. The chain then receded into the ground tearing off Jason's other arm. Despite losing both arms Jason still attacked Matt who spun around and punched Jason in the back which sent him flying towards the edge of the courtyard. Jason hit the barrier at the end of the courtyard, breaking it and Jason fell off the cliff of the mountain and fell to the ground below.

Matt reverted back to his Noah form as he peered over the edge. As he did Majnun appeared in his shadow again.

"Why didn't you just fight him in hand to hand? You could've easily beaten him that way" said Majnun.

"Yeah but he was weak, his punches barely broke my stone armor" said Matt.

"Hey Matt I've been thinking for a bit, why exactly do you want this place?"

"It would seem like such a waste to just destroy it wouldn't you agree" asked Matt.

"That doesn't answer the question."

"I know. I guess I just wanted it, I can use the abbey as a little get away for myself and any other Noah who wants a break."

"You wanted a vacation home" Majnun asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"With the Kamelot's wealth, you could have just bought a nice place" Majnun pointed out.

"True, but this was ever so much more fun" said Matt which made Majnun laugh as he vanished from Matt's shadow. A few moments later Road walked in, dragging the body of the exorcist that tried to get away.

"There are a lot of stairs in this place" said Road, out of breath which made Matt laugh.

"It would have been easier if you didn't drag a dead body here" said Matt with a smile.

"Oh he's not dead" said Road. "I played with him for a bit but I decided to keep him alive."

"Why would you do that" said Matt in a playfully disappointed tone.

"Cuz I wanted to know if you wanted to do anything special with the last survivor."

"Sure why not" said Matt as he walked over to Road who dropped the body in front of him. Matt kneeled down and lifted the exorcist's head.

"Well hello there" Matt said with a friendly smile. "Long time no see."

"Shut up" the exorcist said weakly. "Where's Jason?"

"Jason took a little fall" said Matt. "But I'm sure he's alright, after all it's only what, 260ft (79m) fall" Matt said sarcastically.

"You bastard" said the exorcist and he suddenly activated his innocence, which was a curved dagger. The dagger hit Matt's cursed arm but didn't pierce the skin. Instead it stayed in place at the surface of Matt's skin. Matt looked at his arm with a bit of surprise.

"That's interesting" said Matt. At the same time, Road summoned several candle and plunged them into the exorcist, killing him. Matt looked up at Road a bit upset. "Why did you do that?"

"I was just trying to protect you" said Road. Matt laughed a little.

"I guess it was a bit unnecessary" said Matt, Road made an angry.

"Fine, then I won't try to do it again" said Road as she turned around. Matt laughed uncomfortably.

"No, no Road. I appreciate what you did, really. Thank you" said Matt, trying to cheer her up. "I just said that because his blade didn't even hurt me."

"I saw" said Road, accepting his thanks. "Why do you think it did that?"

"No idea, but I'm not going to worry about it." Matt then grabbed the dagger and broke the blade revealing the innocence. He grabbed it and squeezed on the innocence with his right hand but nothing happened. He opened his hand to reveal that the innocence was still intact. "That's interesting as well" Matt said to himself. Road walked up to him not knowing that Matt just tried to destroy the innocence.

"What's up Matt" asked Road.

"Nothing, hey why don't you destroy the innocence around here" said matt handing over the innocence to Road.

"Why" asked Road.

"I don't feel like doing it." Road protested a bit but then destroyed the 2 pieces of innocence that were there. Matt then approached her. "Come on; let's go check this place out a bit."

The two travelled through many of the abbey's large halls. The two found many things that caught their attention. First, right off the main chapel they found a grassy courtyard surrounded by small pillars. The two then ran into a large circular room with a high ceiling. Massive stone pillars formed an open circle around the middle of the room and the limited light gave the room a sense of ominous peace.

"I think this place will make a great meditation spot" Matt said as he stood in the middle of the room looking at the pillars. Road laughed a little at how absolutely small the pillars made Matt look in comparison.

Eventually they reached a large room with massive stone pillars lining either the long way of the room. There was a table with paper scattered across the table. Matt walked over to the table and began looking through the papers until he saw a letter that caught his attention. After reading it he looked at Road.

"What's on the paper" asked Road.

"It's a letter from the Black Order headquarters. It mentions something interesting that should be brought to the Earls attention."

"What is it" Road asked curiously.

"I'll tell you when we return to the Earl" Road pouted.

"No fair, tell me!"

"Nope" Matt simply said as he placed the letter in his pocket. The two found their way back to a grassy courtyard that they had found near the main hallway of the abbey where Matt had fought. They looked out at the bay where the water was beginning to come back in. The two watched as the sun began to set when Road turned to Matt.

"I can see why you wanted this place. It's pretty cool" said Road.

"I know that's why I didn't destroy it."

"Lord Millennium is still going to kill you though" Road plainly said.

"I doubt it" Matt said with a grin. At that moment a few level two akuma walked up behind them and Matt turned to them. "Good, I'm glad you are here. I need you to guard this place with your lives; do not let anyone other than akuma and Noah into the fortress." The two akuma nodded, acknowledging his order. "Also, get this placed fixed up." The akuma nodded again as Road summoned her door and the two entered it. The akuma looked at each other, shrugged, and then went to work on what Matt had just instructed them.

Black Order Report

Communication was lost with Mont Saint Michel. An investigation was launched and was discovered that the fortress had been taken over by the Noah and was now guarded by an army of akuma. There were no known survivors making the death toll 3 exorcists and 38 finders, totaling 41. Attempts were made to reclaim the fortress, but all attempts failed.

To this day, the Black Order never recovered the fortress. Despite it now being open to the public, it is believed to still be under the control of the Noah. It has been confirmed that a white skinned man can be seen wandering the fortress many days with a pitch black left arm with a red cross on it.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 37 coming soon!**

**I really had fun writing this chapter (and the last one for that matter). I love Mont Saint Michel, and I really wanted to incorporate it into my story. I tried to mention several notable locations in the abbey; you can find photos of most of them. The only place that you couldn't find photos of was the circular room that Matt wished to meditate in. Anyways I realize thay this was a really long chapter (the longest so far) so I'll stop for toaday. I really hoped you enjoyed reading this chapter. Until next time!**


	37. The Return Home

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt and Road returned to the ark. When they arrived they found that the Earl was waiting for them.

"Welcome back my children" the Earl said happily. "You're back later than I expected, did something go wrong?"

"Not quite" said Matt.

"Then what happened?"

"I decided to not destroy the fortress and claim it to be mine" said Matt. The Earl kept his smile but both Road and Matt could tell that he was angry.

"Why didn't you destroy it" asked the Earl, keeping his composure.

"Like I said I didn't destroy it because I wanted it for my own use." The Earl walked up to Matt and put his arm around Matt's shoulders.

"Matt, we can't just go and claim anything that you want. We can't have the exorcists reclaim that fortress, and they are certain to try."

"That's why I had some akuma defend it. It is highly unlikely that they will reclaim it, and if they were to somehow able to I would personally go there and destroy it."

"You should have just done it in the first place."

"Yes, but if I did destroy it then I wouldn't have found this" said Matt as he pulled out the letter he had found. The Earl then lifted his arm off of Matt and grabbed the letter and began to read it as he took a few steps away from Matt.

"What does it say Lord Millennium" asked Road. "Matt refused to tell me" she said as she glared at Matt who just smiled art her, obviously teasing her a bit.

"Are you sure that this is legitimate" asked the Earl as he turned back towards Matt.

"I think so; I found it on a table covered with Black Order documents."

"What does it say" complained Road.

"It says that the Black Order has discovered evidence of a second God crystal" the Earl said in a serious tone.

"What does that mean" asked Road.

"It means that the Black Order has more innocence to work with in order to fight us" said Matt.

"It's not as bad as it seems however" said the Earl.

"Why is that" asked Road.

"Judging by this letter, they don't know much about it only that it works the same way as regular innocence. If that's the case then we know we can destroy it."

"It doesn't sound like a big deal to me" said Road.

"Of course it is" said Matt. "The more innocence that the Black Order has, the more exorcists they can send out at once. That means we are more likely to run into larger battles. Seriously Road, think it through." Road punched Matt in the shoulder.

"Anyways, I'll have the Skulls and the akuma working on this so for now there's nothing to worry about. As long as we can keep their numbers down it won't be a problem" said the Earl.

"Well if that's it can we go" asked Matt.

"Sure, just one more thing though" the Earl said to Matt. "Don't go claiming things like that again. I can forgive it this time, but I won't a second time." Matt smiled and nodded at the Earl.

"Of course my lord, it shall not happen again." With that said Road and Matt left the room. Outside in the hallway Matt and Road turned separate ways which surprised Road.

"Hey aren't you coming home" asked Road.

"Yeah, I just have to take care of something first" said Matt with a smile then he turned and walked away.

* * *

><p>Matt walked into the Skull's lab. He began to look through the many Skulls there, looking for the one who gave him the new seal to his arm. After a few minutes of searching he found the Skull with a badge on his sleeve which he recognized as the same badge on the Skull from before. He walked up to the Skull who turned around when he heard someone walking towards him.<p>

"Ah it's good to see you so soon how's your arm doing" asked the Skull as Matt approached him.

"Well that's what I'm here to talk to you about" said Matt.

"Oh? Did something happen to it?"

"Not quite. There are two things that caught my attention when I was out on my last mission. Both of which I think you'll find very interesting."

"What are they?"

"Where to start" Matt said to himself as he looked at the table where he saw a fairly large scalpel. Matt grabbed the scalpel help out his cursed arm and with his right hand struck the blade end of the scalpel into his arm with a lot of force. The blade shattered into pieces on contact with his arm. The Skull watched in fascination as Matt showed him.

"You're right that is certainly interesting" said the Skull as he grabbed a notepad and pencil. "Tell me does your arm feel normal?"

"Yes, it feels normal" Matt said impatiently. "I told you that the last time we talked, which was today!"

"I realize that, I just needed to make sure that nothing has changed" said the Skull as he wrote something down in the notepad. "What was the second thing that you wanted to show me?"

"Well, for some reason I can't destroy innocence" said Matt, and the Skull looked at him with a curious look.

"I thought that might happen."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, when we were researching about what affects the innocence could have on you, that was one of the possibilities." For some reason Matt became very upset at the Skull for saying this and grabbed him by the collar.

"Don't you think that something like that would have been important to tell me" yelled Matt. The Skull became a little nervous.

"We didn't feel as if it was necessary at the time, we thought that the seal would have taken care of that."

"Well it obviously didn't work" said Matt in a harsh tone.

"We'll look into it, we'll figure out why this is happening." Matt coming to his senses that his anger was uncalled for let go of the Skull.

"Make sure you let me know as soon as you figure anything out" said Matt as he began to walk away. As Matt exited the lab he saw Road leaning against the wall. It looked as if something was on her mind.

"Road what are you doing here? I thought you were going home" said Matt as he approached her.

"I wanted to know what you needed to do so I followed after you."

"You're so nosey sometimes you know that" Matt said with a smile.

"I heard about the fact that you can't destroy innocence. That's why you asked me to destroy the pieces at the fortress isn't it?" Matt stared at Road for a moment, his smile was gone. But after a moment the smile returned.

"Yes it is."

"Why didn't you tell me? We're family you can tell me these kinds of things" said Road, a bit upset that Matt hadn't told her.

"I didn't want to worry you that's all" said Matt.

"That's a terrible excuse" said Road as she pouted. Matt laughed a little.

"That may be true but it's the truth. Look, the Skulls are going to it so we don't need to worry about it let's just go home and rest before the Earl sends us on yet another assignment." Road nodded and summoned her door for them to head back to the mansion.

* * *

><p>The next day, Matt was sitting around in his room when a knock came to his door. He opened it and he saw Tyki.<p>

"Hello Tyki" Matt said with a smile. "Why have you come to visit me today?"

"I came to tell you that Wisely will be returning home today" said Tyki.

"Is he now? I haven't seen him in a while" said Matt with a little surprised. "I don't think I was part of the family at the time that he joined was I?"

"No you had just recently left, though I still don't think Sheril ever considered you out of the family" Tyki said with a smile.

"That's true, so when is he coming home?"

"He should be here in a matter of hours; we will be greeting him in the second floor library like when you returned."

"Alright, I'll make sure that I'm there as soon as possible" said Matt and he closed his door. About an hour later Matt left his room a bit better dressed than what he was wearing, though his clothes were still casual. He entered the library to find Road and Tyki sitting on one of the couches in the room. Tyki had a book in hand and Road had bag of candy. Matt grabbed a book from one of the piles of books on the ground and took a seat in an armchair.

"So your definition of as soon as possible is an hour later" joked Tyki.

"Hey, you said he wouldn't be back for a while so I though why rush" said Matt.

"True, but what could you have possibly done for an hour?"

"Meditate, duh" said Matt as he began to read the book he picked up.

"Hey, I heard from Road about your new little place you have" said Tyki.

"Yeah, I was going to tell you myself, I guess Road decided to tell you first" said Matt as he shot a quick glare at Road who just stuck her tongue out at him then began to eat more candy.

"I don't know if Road told you but that place is open for you guys to use when you wish, there are plenty of rooms there."

"Seriously? Road said you were going to keep it all to yourself" Tyki said with a grin. Matt simply looked at Tyki then Road.

"Did she now. Road are you causing me trouble" Matt said somewhat sarcastically as he enjoyed the conversation.

"Maybe" grinned Road which made Matt laugh.

"Of course you are" said Matt. At that moment a butler came in carrying a few glasses and a bottle of wine. He placed it down next to Tyki who thanked him and the butler just as quickly left the room. Tyki began to fill one of the glasses and began to take a sip when he saw Matt staring at him.

"What" asked Tyki.

"Aren't you going to offer us some" asked Matt.

"I didn't bring it here just for me, I figured you would want some as well" said Tyki as he placed his glass down and filled another and held it out. "That's why there is more than one glass here."

Matt was a bit embarrassed that he missed something that obvious and walked over and took the glass from Tyki. Road, noticing Matt's embarrassment began to laugh at Matt. Matt took his seat, ignoring the laughs and took a sip of the wine. After a few minutes Road became focused on her candy again so she stopped laughing and began to eat again. Matt let out a silent sigh of relief. Around the same time they heard an echoing knock which sounded like it was coming from the front door.

"It sounds like he's arrived" said Tyki with a smile. Matt said nothing and took another sip of wine.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 38 coming soon!**

**This chapter marks the beginning of a new arc which has not been named yet. This one will last around 4 to 5 chapters so it will be a longer one. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	38. The Family Reunites

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

"So where is Sheril? Didn't you say that we were all going to greet him" Matt asked Tyki as he placed his glass of wine down.

"He's actually meeting Wisely at the door to personally welcome him back before everyone else" said Tyki.

"Well that doesn't seem right" said Matt.

"Why is that" asked Tyki.

"Well he didn't personally greet me when I returned, so why is Wisely getting special treatment" said Matt who had a hint of annoyance in his tone which both Road and Tyki picked up on.

"Is that jealousy I'm hearing" asked Road with a malicious smile on her face.

"Of course not" lied Matt, he wasn't going to admit something as petty as that, not to Road, who would never let him live it down.

"Are you sure? I could have sworn I heard the sound of jealousy in your voice" said Road as she stood up and casually walked behind Matt's chair and leaned on the top of it, bag of candy in hand.

"You must be mistaken, Road" said Matt keeping a straight face. "I only meant is that I find it weird that he would go and greet him over me. I mean I am the eldest son aren't I" said Matt, the jealousy could easily be heard.

"I knew it you are jealous" said Road as she spun around the armchair and began to go back to her seat. As she spun Matt managed to grab Road's bag of candy from her hands. Road immediately turned around, anger could be seen in her eyes. "Give it back" Road said angrily.

"Then admit that you didn't hear jealousy in my voice" said Matt as the floor opened up right under where Matt held the bag. "Otherwise I'll drop it down the hole and you'll never get it again."

"I'll just get Tyki to buy me more" Road said confidently.

"Don't get me involved with your little sibling quarrel" Tyki said with a grin. He was obviously enjoying this.

"No fair" complained Road as she summoned a candle and hurled it at Matt's head. Matt leaned his head to the side and the candle pierced the armchair.

"Was that really necessary" asked Matt. "All you need to do is admit that you didn't hear jealousy in my voice and you'll get the bag back." Road stared at the bag for a moment.

"You promise?"

"Of course."

"Fine I didn't hear any jealousy in your voice. Now give me back my candy" said Road. Matt smiled and tossed the bag at Road who easily caught it. She then stuck her tongue out at Matt, sat down and began to eat more candy. Tyki just sat there quietly laughing.

"Something funny" Matt asked Tyki as he pulled out Road's candle.

"No, nothing at all. I just remembered an old joke" said Tyki realizing that that candle could be coming for him next. Matt just glared at him for a moment then gave up.

Around the same time the sound of Sheril's voice could be heard approaching the library and sure enough after a few moments Sheril entered the library with Wisely walking in behind him.

"I brought all of our family here just to welcome you home" Sheril said warmly as he gestured to everyone in the room. Wisely scanned the room and saw that Matt was there which struck him as odd.

"Why is Matt here" asked Wisely.

"Matt has been part of our little family for a very long time" said Sheril.

"I don't understand he was never around the house before."

"That's because I left the family for almost 2 years" said Matt. "But I've been part of the family again for a little while now. To be honest, I'm a bit surprised that Father never mentioned it."

"That's odd of you to call him that" said Wisely, a sparkle could be seen in Sheril's eyes, not the same kind as when Road refers to him as father but a sparkle none the less.

"Sheril insisted that I called him that while at the house. He does love this little family that he's created" said Matt. "Speaking of which Sheril, why did you personally greet Wisely when he returned but not me when I returned to the mansion in nearly 2 years" asked Matt.

"Because I didn't think you wanted that" said Sheril a little confused by Matt's question. "Why do you ask?"

"Because he's jealous" said Wisely after reading Matt's thoughts. However before he say another word a chunk of wood hit him square in his demon eye causing Wisely to fall to the ground and scream in pain. Sheril looked at Matt a little upset by what Matt had done.

"Matt why would you do that" asked Sheril.

"I didn't want him spreading lies" lied Matt as he stood up and walked over to Wisely. He dragged the squirming Wisely by the back of his collar back to the seat Matt was sitting in. He picked him up and placed him on the chair. Matt then walked over to Road and reached into her bag of candy, pulling out a few pieces, then returned to Wisely. He then held the candy out to him.

"Here, eat this, it will take your mind off the pain" said Matt in a sincere tone. "I'm sorry for hitting you in the head." Wisely took the candy and began to eat it which made Matt smile. After a moment Wisely seemed to calm down. Matt then patted Wisely on the head. "It's good to have you home" Matt said. As he said this, Wisely accidently knocked over Matt's glass of wine onto Matt's shirt, staining it. Despite the fact that Matt liked the shirt he didn't show any frustration. He then began to leave the room.

"Where you going Matt" asked Road.

"Just going to change my shirt, I'll be right back" Matt said with a smile then left the room.

Matt took off his shirt and threw it on his chair in his room and began searching for a new one. As he did he sensed someone was watching him.

"What is it Wisely" asked Matt.

"I just came to apologize for ruining your shirt. And for reading your thoughts." Matt grabbed a shirt and turned to Wisely revealing the several scars that he now had across his torso. There was a circular scar on his right shoulder where he was shot by an arrow. There was also a small scar at the center of his chest. Of course the largest scar was the one that crossed Matt's entire torso. The sight of the scars disturbed Wisely a little which Matt noticed.

"Don't worry about those scars" said Matt in a reassuring voice. "These scars are here because I chose to defend my family. They are scars that I wear proudly because I know that with each one, I prevented Road from getting hurt."

"I heard about that it must have been hard to fight all of those exorcists" said Wisely.

"Hard, yes. But it was worth it" said Matt as he put on his shirt. "Know this; you are part of the family as well so I will protect you with my life."

"I don't need protection" Wisely said a bit arrogantly. Matt laughed a little.

"I'm sure our sister didn't think that either. But that doesn't change anything. I chose to protect her because I care for this family. Now let's head back, I'm sure everyone is waiting" Matt said with a smile. "Oh, and one more thing, don't enter my thoughts."

"Sorry, sometimes I forget to show restraint" said Wisely.

"Don't worry about it just try harder." With that the two returned to the library.

* * *

><p>A week passed since Wisely's return to the Kamelot mansion. Over that time both Matt and Wisely began to get used to each other's company inside the mansion. However, Wisely did not improve on not reading Matt's mind which always led to Wisely getting hit in the demon eye by whatever Matt could throw at him. Despite this, the two remained on very friendly terms; both had accepted the other into the family.<p>

One day, Matt was smoking with Tyki outside when Wisely came outside.

"What is it Wisely" asked Tyki.

"The Earl has wishes to see us" said Wisely. Tyki finished his cigarette while Matt just dropped his and crushed it with his foot. The two then followed Wisely who brought them to Sheril Road who had her door already summoned. The 5 of them entered and found themselves in the Earls telephone room.

"Welcome, welcome everyone" the Earl said happily.

"You wanted to see us" asked Sheril.

"Yes, I have a rather important mission for all of you to perform" said the Earl.

"This must be rather important for you to bring 5 of us for a single mission" Matt pointed out.

"Indeed, that is because it is an important mission. As you are all aware, on Matt's last mission he discovered information about a second God crystal. Well it appears that the crystal has yet to break down into individual pieces of innocence and the exorcists have found it." Everyone looked at the Earl in shock.

"Why didn't you have us go out earlier and look for it" Matt said angrily.

"I agree" said Tyki. "I think we could have been more productive if we had been actively searching for it since the information came to our attention."

"I would have sent you out but we had absolutely no idea where to look. If the Black Order knew of its existence then they would have known where it was. I wanted them to discover it and save us the trouble of finding it, now all we have to do is take it from them. You will go and destroy the group that is safeguarding it."

"How many are defending it" asked Tyki.

"We are looking at roughly 20 exorcists and an undetermined amount of finders. It is important that you to destroy their forces and recover the God crystal."

"Where are they now" asked Road.

"They are in Athens, Greece. They have a large encampment at the Acropolis. You must leave immediately; I have an ark gate that will take you directly there." As the Earl said this a large ark gate opened and the 5 walked into it. When the 5 Noah exited the ark gate they found themselves at the outskirts of the Acropolis, near the amphitheater.

"Well, let's get this over with" said Wisely, the others nodded in agreement as they approached the amphitheater.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 39 coming soon!**

**This was a fun chapter to write (even though it took ages to write), so I hope you enjoyed reading it. Again I don't have that much to say only that the battle will take place over 2 chapters. Until next time!**


	39. The Battle of Acropolis part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

The 5 Noah approached the ruins of the old amphitheater. A large entrance stood between them and the amphitheater. They stood on the outside of the wall looking in. There they could see dozens of armed finders as well as a few exorcists.

"It looks like even the finders are armed for this one" said Tyki.

"Yeah, but does that matter" asked Matt.

"I suppose not."

"Aww is Tyki scared of the finders" teased Road.

"Hardly, I was just making an observation" said Tyki.

"Stop" Matt said quietly. "We should keep the element of surprise here."

"Ok, do you have a plan then" asked Wisely.

"Of course" grinned Matt. "We will have to split up so that we can find the God crystal. That is our main priority."

"Of course, that is why we're here" said Tyki.

"As for our groups, Tyki and Sheril will provide a distraction so Wisely can head up the stairs of the cliff after dealing with the group here. Road and I will head along the side of the cliff and meet you at the top of the mountain. That is where they are most likely keeping it." The others nodded in agreement. "Attack on my signal."

"Wait, what's the signal" asked Tyki. At that moment spikes began to rise out of the ground in the amphitheater.

"That's the signal" Matt said sarcastically and everyone entered the amphitheater. Every finder and exorcist was taken completely off guard by the sudden attack giving Sheril the perfect chance to take control of their bodies and have Tyki kill them with his tease. Road and Matt ignored that fight and quickly began to run along the side of the looming mountain.

Road and Matt reached the Theatre of Dionysus and to their surprise there were even more finders and exorcists camped out in these ruins than the amphitheater.

"I call the ones on the left, you can take the ones on the right" Road said to Matt.

"There are twice as many on the left" Matt said plainly.

"I'm aware" Road said with a grin which made Matt smile.

"Fine, just stay safe alright?"

"Of course, and I can assume that you will end up getting yourself hurt" Road said sarcastically.

"I don't do it on purpose you know" said Matt.

"I know" said Road and the two parted ways to deal with their opponents.

Matt ran head long into a large group of finders. As he reached them he turned his right arm into a sword and cut the first finder he saw in half. The finders were taken off guard and were not prepared for the sudden attack. In the same motion Matt spun around and cut another finder across the chest causing the finder to fall to the ground. At this point many finders had their weapons drawn. The weapons ranged from swords to guns and those with swords tried to attack first. One of the finders took a swing at Matt but he caught it with his cursed arm. Matt clenched his fist that was holding the sword, shattering it. Matt then took his other arm and stabbed the finder.

Suddenly, Matt was kicked in the back and he was sent flying into the ground 50 yards (45.7m) away from where he was standing. Matt laid on the ground for a moment before standing back up. As he stood up he looked up to see a familiar face. Lenalee was standing in front of him, innocence activated.

"Hello Lenalee" said Matt as he finished standing up. "I wasn't expecting you to be here."

"Matt what are you doing" asked Lenalee "why are you attacking us?"

"Isn't that obvious? We're here to recover the second God crystal" said Matt. Lenalee looked at Matt in shock.

"How did you know about that? Only a few high ranking exorcists knew about that."

"Really" Matt said, surprised. "You mean to tell me that the guy I killed at Mont Saint Michel was a high ranking exorcist" Matt asked in disbelief.

"So it was you who killed Jason" said Lenalee, with sadness in her voice.

"Yeah, so what of it" asked Matt. He was going to say something else but Lenalee kneed Matt in the gut. The force of the hit lifted Matt in the air where Lenalee leaped into the air did a front flip and on her way down kicked Matt in the back sending Matt straight into the ground leaving a large crater. Lenalee was about to strike at matt again but a stone pillar rose from the ground and spikes shot out of the pillar. Lenalee was able to dodge all of the spikes but many of them still ended up hitting finders. Lenalee landed a few feet (meters) away from Matt who was now standing up. She recognized that Matt was in his awakened form. Matt stood up and looked at his cursed hand which had not changed into a claw.

"Seriously" Matt asked himself in disbelief, "what the heck is up with this arm?" But he didn't have time to think about is as Lenalee immediately began to attack Matt again.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere Tyki and Sheril had made their way to the bottom of the Propylaea. At this point they were surrounded by finders and exorcists.<p>

"There certainly are a lot of them" said Tyki.

"Indeed" said Sheril, "but it doesn't matter, they've focused too much on us and Wisely has managed up the stairs just as planned. He'll be able to handle what's up there."

"Still I hope that Road and Matt can get up there to help and take some of the pressure of Wisely." Sheril nodded in agreement and the two began to attack the forces surrounding them.

* * *

><p>On top of the mountain, Wisely had made his way to the Parthenon a trail of bodies with their heads crushed. As he entered the Parthenon he encountered a familiar exorcist.<p>

"I remember you" said Wisely. "You're Yu Kanda, the one we used to wake up Alma Karma." Kanda stood at the other end of the ruined Parthenon with a large box behind him.

"Sorry but I don't remember the names of my enemies" Kanda said coldly. "But you're going to pay for what you did to me." Kanda then drew his reforged Mugen and charged at Wisely.

* * *

><p>The fight between Matt and Lenalee was still going strong. As he fought he looked over and saw that Road had created a large pocket dimension that covered everyone she was fighting. As he looked back to Lenalee he was met by a foot to the face which sent Matt into the cliff side. Matt's body fell out of the rock and hit the ground. Lenalee then landed on the ground next to Matt.<p>

"You're strong Matt but I'm faster than you" said an upset Lenalee. "You will never beat me if you can't even keep up." Matt coughed up a little blood then grinned.

"Your right, I can't beat you at this speed. I guess I'll just have to move faster" said Matt as his aura surrounded him. Lenalee took a few steps back as Matt stood back up revealing his ultimate form; Zettai-tekina Kyoki. Matt then smiled and vanished. Lenalee couldn't even blink before Matt was right in front of her, punching her in the stomach which sent her flying backwards. Matt then appeared behind her and kicked her into the ground. Lenalee was fast to recover and launched herself at Matt who easily dodged the attack as he landed on the ground. Several Madness Chains appeared out of the ground and tried to wrap themselves around Lenalee. However, she was faster than the chains so they fell back into the ground. Lenalee appeared focused on the chains when Matt appeared in front of her and began to throw a punch. Lenalee however fooled Matt and easily dodged the attack and kicked Matt into the cliff side.

As Matt hit the rock he suddenly had the feeling that someone was wrong. The feeling bothered Matt but he knew he had to deal with Lenalee first. Lenalee went in to kick Matt again but Matt grabbed one of her ankles with his cursed arm and flung her into the cliff next to her. Matt then leapt to the ground. Lenalee recovered after a moment and used her Kirikaze ability to kick a massive tornado. As Matt watched the tornado came closer to Matt the feeling he had got suddenly much worse and this alarmed Matt. He dodged the tornado attack, which left a massive impact on the ground, and looked towards Road. He saw that the dimension Road made was still up so he knew she was fine. Matt knew he had to figure this out immediately but he could not just ignore Lenalee. Matt then leapt at Lenalee who was in the air. Lenalee was still recovering from the attack as Matt appeared in front of her. She tried to protect herself but Matt hit her in the gut which sent her back into the cliff. Matt landed on the ground and jumped again at Lenalee who was now falling to the ground. Matt kicked her in the side of the head which immediately knocked her out as she crashed into the ground.

"Road, take care of the rest" yelled Matt in Road's direction hoping that she heard him. He didn't wait for a response as he reverted to his awakened form and had a stone pillar bring him to the top of the mountain to check on Wisely. Once at the top he ran in the direction of the Parthenon. Matt was at the outskirts of the Parthenon when he saw a body lying on the ground. He ran a little closer than froze in place, eyes wide in horror.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 40 coming soon!**

**I would first like to say that instead of describing some areas I just gave the names of various locations of the Acropolis. I apologize if that makes it hard to imagine what the places look like however when I tried writing it with the descriptions the story dragged on in spots that I did not want to drag on. Please let me know if this is a problem and I will revise it in the next update. I will usually not do this however everything was mainly ruins so it became rather difficult to summarize the different locations. Anyways now that I've gotten that taken care of, this chapter did take a while to write (mainly because I had to heavily revise it). This was the first time that I looked at the battle as a whole even though I still focused on Matt. I hope you enjoyed it. I realize that I've talked enough for today so just let me know if you want the descriptions (I would prefer that you leave me a pm instead of a review if that's the case but don't let that discourage you from writing a review). Until next time!**


	40. The Battle of Acropolis part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt stared at the body lying face down in a pool of blood as he stood just outside of the Parthenon. Matt was frozen, horror had taken over his body, but he knew he had to move. So he immediately ran over to the body that he recognized to be Wisely.

"Wisely" yelled Matt as he fell to his knees next to Wisely, panic could be heard in Matt's voice. Matt scanned Wisely's body and saw several cuts across his body. But the injury that caught Matt's eye was a stab wound in his back in the location of his heart. He turned the body over, and saw that Wisely's eyes were lifeless.

"Don't do this this" said Matt, panic turning into sorrow. "Don't you die on me." Despite not wanting to, tears began pouring out of Matt's eyes unwillingly. He knew that he was dead. Matt held the body up a little hoping that there was still life in Wisely's now lifeless body. He time to mourn as Kanda appeared behind Matt and swung his sword down on him. Matt instantly turned to block the attack. However the attack cut down his right eye from the top of his head to the bottom of his cheek. Matt fell back as Kanda then kicked Matt a few feet away from Wisely. Matt just laid on the ground silently, eyes closed with tears pouring out of his eyes. Kanda walked up to Matt, sword in hand.

"I finally get to repay you for breaking my sword Noah" said Kanda as he raised his sword over Matt, ready to give the killing blow. Suddenly an aura arm came out from Matt's back and struck Kanda sending him flying into a pillar. Matt stood up slowly but he had apparently stopped crying. Kanda looked at Matt as he transformed into his ultimate form, then Matt started to quietly laugh.

"What's so funny Noah" asked Kanda.

"Nothing really" said Matt, his voice sounded off. "I was just thinking about how much has changed since the last time I had control." At that moment Matt opened his eyes. Instead of having the color of his eyes red, Matt's eyes were completely black. "You made a big mistake exorcist, you've crossed the line and now Matt has asked me to take care of you."

"And you who are you" asked Kanda.

"That doesn't matter" said Majnun who now had control over Matt's body. "All that matters is that you will die here." As Majnun said this black flames seemed to erupt out of the ground. After a moment a ring of flames cut Kanda off from leaving the Parthenon. Kanda, realizing that this was not a smart battle to fight tried to retreat. But as he reached the black flames Matt called out to him.

"I wouldn't touch those if I were you" said Majnun. Kanda looked at Matt. "Those flames are a unique type of Madness aura that only I can create. Only Noah can safely pass through them. You touch those flames and you will instantly be devoured by them. And to be honest I would much rather kill you with my own hands." Matt then vanished in a burst of speed and reappeared behind Kanda. Matt threw a punch that was covered in aura and as he made contact with Kanda's back the aura spread out across his body, widening the area where Kanda would be hit. Kanda went flying into another pillar, destroying it on impact. Kanda stood back up as Matt crack his knuckles.

"You're not dealing with the same Matt that you've fought before" said Majnun. "Matt has yet to fully grasp the power he has. Now me on the other hand, I don't have to worry about that."

"And why is that" asked Kanda, realizing that the person he was talking was not the same person who he had fought before.

"Because I am the one who gives him his power, I am Matt's true power." As Majnun said this several exact Madness Clones emerged from the ground. Matt motioned for the clones to attack and with the same speed that Matt has the clones attacked Kanda. At the same time, Kanda activated his fourth illusion style and vanished in the blink of an eye. A moment later the clones that were attacking Kanda were cut to pieces. Kanda reappeared right behind Matt and attempted to stab him. However the sword could not pierce Matt's skin. Kanda took several short leaps back and lunged at Matt again. Matt simply waved his arms to the side and a large ring of Madness Aura formed around Matt and shot out like a shockwave. Kanda raised his sword to deflect it.

* * *

><p>Road was crouched next to a dead exorcist, she was poking the corpse with a stick that she had found and appeared to be enjoying herself. Suddenly the Madness Aura shockwave hit Road which made her fall over the dead exorcist and land on her face. Road muttered various complaints as she stood back up, rubbing her nose. She then realized that tears were coming out of her eyes. Fearing the worse she began to run to where Tyki and Sheril were supposed to be.<p>

* * *

><p>Tyki and Sheril were finishing off the last of their opponents, piles of bodies were scattered across the ground.<p>

"I think that's the last of them" said Tyki as he let a dead finder drop to the ground. As he finished speaking the Madness Aura shockwave reached them and knocked them both to the ground.

"What on earth was that" asked Sheril.

"I have absolutely no idea" said Tyki as he stood up. "But something tells me that something went wrong."

"I agree, I had a strange feeling a few moments ago but I chose to ignore it" said Sheril as Tyki helped him up.

"I think I know what happened" Tyki said after realizing that he was crying. "I think we should hurry and get up there." Sheril agreed and the two began to run up the stairs that led to the Parthenon. They were about half way up when Road showed up at the bottom of the stairs.

"Tyki" yelled Road and Tyki looked back.

"Road, what are you doing over here" asked Tyki as he yelled back to Road who was now running up the stairs. "Weren't you supposed to stay with Matt?"

"He created a stone pillar and ran off before I could catch up with him" said Road as she caught up with Tyki and Sheril. "He left me with everyone he was fighting."

"Are you alright" asked Sheril.

"Yeah, Matt had dealt with the strongest one there and so everyone else were easy to deal with, especially when I turned them on each other" Road said with a grin which quickly went away. "What is happening up there?"

"We're not sure" said Tyki. "I think something has happened to Wisely and Matt."

"We can't wait any longer" said Sheril. "We need to get up there and help out." Road and Tyki nodded and the three continued up the stairs.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Kanda was holding of Matt's attacks with a lot of difficulty. After the first shockwave, Matt threw waves of Madness Aura at him which Kanda managed to deflect with his sword. However, the constant waves were wearing him down and he knew that he could not keep this up for much longer. Finally after Matt threw one last wave of Madness Aura and Kanda could not block the attack. The wave sent Kanda into another pillar which toppled over. Kanda sat on the ground, slumped over, he had no more energy and reverted back to his normal appearance. Matt walked up to Kanda and stepped on his sword so that he could not use it.<p>

"This is the difference between our powers" said Majnun as he stood over Kanda. "I'm surprised that Matt hasn't been able to kill you." As he said this he raised his left arm and held it out to the side of Matt. A few black sparks flew from the ground and a large black sword emerged from the ground. Matt grabbed it with his hand and held the tip if the sword in front of Kanda's face.

"You will die by the sword, a fitting end for a swordsman such as yourself. Wouldn't you agree" said Majnun as he pulled the sword back and prepared to pierce the exorcist's heart. He was about to strike when he noticed something spinning towards him. Matt took a step back and the object passed straight through the sword Matt carried. Light cracks began to form on the blade, and then it shattered into thousands of pieces. Matt looked at what had caused his sword to break and what he saw surprised him. Standing there, sword in hand was Allen Walker.

"Now this is an unexpected turn of events" Majnun said with a grin. "What are you doing here Walker?"

"I'm here to help my friends" Allen said calmly as he looked at Matt. "Tell me, where is the real Matt?"

"I'm sorry, but Matt doesn't want to come out right now, he asked me to take over for a while" said Majnun.

"So you're in control of his body then" said Allen.

"That is correct. Tell me does this mean you are choosing to side with the exorcists?"

"Yes, I was always going to return to them" said Allen. Matt shook his head in disappointment.

"That is a shame to hear, I really didn't want to kill a Noah, and I know Matt won't like it, but if you're going to side with the innocence then I guess I have no choice."

At the same time Road, Tyki and Sheril arrived outside of the Parthenon they stopped in their tracks when they saw the large black flames blocking their paths.

"What on is this fire" asked Sheril.

"I'm not entirely sure, it resembles Matt's Madness Aura but I've never seen it take this form, have you" asked Tyki as he turned to Road.

"No, never" Road said in a worried tone. Tyki smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, if that is in fact Madness Aura then that means Matt is alright, and I'm sure Wisely is as well. Just then Allen was sent flying through the fire and past them. All three of the Noah's eyes widened in surprise as they watched Allen hit the ground. They then looked back and saw Matt walking out of the flames.

"Matt, why are you attacking Allen" asked Road as Matt approached them.

"He's sided with the exorcists, he is our enemy" said Majnun which caught Road off guard. Matt looked at her revealing the pure black eyes then looked back at Allen who was standing back up. "Just give up Walker" said Majnun. "You can't beat me." As he walked he felt two hands grab both of his arms. He looked back and saw that Road and Tyki were holding his arms. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Matt, get control of yourself" said Tyki. "We need Walker on our side." Matt looked at Road who he could tell was agreeing with Tyki. Matt then saw that Sheril was approaching them. However, Matt saw Kanda fleeing the area; he looked back to Allen who was also gone. Majnun became upset that they let them get away. He pulled his arms away from Road and Tyki and began to walk back to the Parthenon.

"Matt, where's Wisely" asked Sheril. Matt simply looked back and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Matt got here as fast as he could but by the time he arrived it was too late" said Majnun as the flames disappeared revealing Wisely's body. The three Noah's eyes widened and ran over to Wisely, except for Road who walked next to Matt.

"You're not Matt are you" said Road. Matt gave a small smile.

"Technically I am, I'm just controlling his body." Road immediately realized what this meant and she summoned dozens of candles around Matt. This caught Tyki and Sheril's attention.

"Road what are you doing" asked Tyki as he stood up from Wisely's side.

"Majnun has taken control of Matt again" said Road. Tyki became alert and readied himself for a fight but Matt lifted his hands in reassurance.

"Rest assured I am only in control because Matt wished me to" said Majnun.

"Then let him have control again" said Road. Matt's face saddened.

"He doesn't want to" said Majnun. "He's taking Wisely's death rather harshly and he doesn't wish to come out right now." Road looked into Matt's black eyes and realized that what he was saying was the truth. The candles that surrounded Matt vanished and Tyki relaxed as well and turned his attention back to Wisely.

"Is it true" Tyki asked Sheril. "Is he really dead?"

"He sustained several wounds but the biggest one was definitely the stab through the heart. It was a lethal wound" Sheril said in a sad voice.

"But he may not be dead, he could still be alive" Tyki pointed out.

"Matt wasn't stabbed in the heart, which is a fatal wound no matter how you look at it." At this point Road was standing next to Tyki as Matt walked over to a large box that had the Black Order's seal on it. He opened the box to find it empty.

"This mission was a total failure" said Majnun as he turned back to the other Noah. "They got the God crystal out safely and we lost one of our own. We might as well destroy the innocence that is scattered around the area and get something out of this mess." Tyki nodded in agreement and stood and began to walk away; Road followed behind him. Matt took a seat on the ground next to Sheril.

"I thought Matt had sealed you away" said Sheril as he watched over Wisely's body.

"Matt let me out a while back when he was captured by the Order. I do not seek to control his body any more though."

"I find that hard to believe" said Sheril, doubting Majnun's words.

"I'm sure it does but as I said Matt allowed me to do this because of what had just happened. Matt is blaming himself for this.

An hour passed and Road and Tyki returned from destroying the innocence.

"In total, we destroyed a grand total of 18 pieces of innocence" said Tyki as he sat down and leaned against a broken pillar. Matt then stood up.

"Road I need you to open your door to Mont Saint Michel" said Majnun. Road looked at Matt in confusion.

"Why?"

"Matt wishes to be alone for a while, and right now the fortress is where he wants to go." Road nodded and opened her door. Matt didn't look back as he entered the door.

Three days passed since Road, Tyki, and Sheril returned with Wisely's body. They had given him a proper funeral but Matt was did not attend. In fact he hadn't been seen since the battle. Another week passed and still no word from Matt. Now the members of the Kamelot family were getting worried about him. The 3 Noah travelled to Mont Saint Michel and began to search for Matt. Eventually they found him meditating in the exact room where Matt had told Road he would mediate. He looked normal, except for the new scar across his right eye, and when his eyes opened they saw his golden eyes, so they knew he had returned.

"I thought I told Majnun to tell you that I wished to be alone" said Matt as he sat on the stone floor.

"We were worried about you" said Sheril. "We were hoping you would come home." Matt sighed.

"I'm not ready to return, I haven't even come close to forgiving myself for letting Wisely die." After hearing this Road became very upset at Matt. She walked up to him and slapped him across the face. Matt stared into the air, shocked about what had just happened.

"Matt you need to face facts" said Road. "Wisely died doing his job, or have you forgotten we are at war with the exorcists."

"I have not forgotten" said Matt.

"Then you need to forgive yourself and move on, don't let his death be in vain" said Road and Matt looked at her as if she had said the exact words that he needed to hear.

"You're right Road, I cannot allow his death to be in vain" said Matt as he stood up. "I swear I will never let another member of my precious family to die again. And I will make the entire Black Order pay for what they've done. Road smiled at Matt as she saw the same look in his eyes that he had before their last mission. Road then opened her door and Matt followed his family back home.

Black Order report

The Noah attack on the Acropolis was a devastating. A total of 70 finders and 18 exorcists were killed in the battle. However, the mission was deemed a success with the retrieval of the second God Crystal, delivered by Yu Kanda and marked the death of the 5th apostle. The battle also marked the return of Allen Walker who had been missing for nearly 2 years.

**Author's Note:**** In this chapter, I wrote Matt as two people during the fight. When he spoke, he spoke as Majnun. However whenever Matt moved, he moved as Matt. The reason I did this is because Majnun has no body and was using Matt's to move. And because the story is third person, I had to describe all the movement as Matt not Majnun. I hope that helped clarify things (or perhaps made it worse in which case sorry.)**

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 41 coming soon!**

**I had so much fun writing this fight mainly because I got to really explore just how strong Matt could be (and there will be more of this in thte future). I really hoped you enjoyed this chapter as it ends this current arc. I just wanted to say that I may take Sunday off so I can get ahead in my writing, but that is not a guarantee. Either way let me know what you thought of the chapter. Also, I've added the abilities Matt used to his bio on my page. Until next time!**


	41. Family Feud

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt and the rest of his family returned to the Kamelot mansion after convincing Matt to come home. When they arrived a butler was there to greet them.

"Welcome home masters" said the butler with a bow. "We have a visitor that has just arrived."

"Really" said Sheril in surprise. "I was not expecting anyone today."

"It is the Earl. He arrived only a short while ago looking for you. He is currently out on the back porch with your wife." Everyone was a little surprised to hear that the Earl was at the house. And they all made their way to the back porch. There they saw the Earl in his white form sitting in a chair with a cup of tea. Tricia was attending the rose bushes with a few maids. The Earl turned his head to see that Sheril and his little family were approaching him.

"Welcome home everyone" the Earl said with a smile. "I see that you managed to bring Matt home."

"Yes, it took a little convincing but in the end Matt decided to come home" said Sheril as he took the seat to the left of the Earl while Tyki took the seat to the right. Road sat on Sheril's lap and Matt grabbed his own chair and sat across from the Earl. The Earl looked at Matt and could tell that Matt was still upset, though he was trying to hide it.

"Matt, I understand that you're taking Wisely's loss harshly but do not worry, he will reincarnate in time" said the Earl, Matt looked at the Earl and gave a weak smile.

"I realize that, but I still feel guilty about it, I sent him on his own, I sent him to his death."

"That is true, but you cannot change what has been done."

"I realize that and now I am even more determined to protect my family and destroy the Black Order" Matt said with a determined look in his eyes.

"Well that is good to hear" the Earl said with a smile. "Because we need to prepare for the future. With the second God Crystal in the exorcists' hands we can assume there will be a drastic increase in their numbers. This means we must change our plan of attack."

"How so" asked Tyki.

"Usually, I would have you go out and destroy innocence and exorcists. However, we must now also focus on accommodators. We must prevent the creation of as many exorcists as we can."

"That sounds easy enough" said Matt. "But can't you just send akuma to deal with them?"

"This is true except finding an accommodator is not easy and usually we only know of them when they are travelling with exorcists. I would send akuma to deal with them but the exorcists are getting stronger many of them are able to easily defeat the level 3 akumas and I don't have enough level 4 akuma to take on such a task."

"So let me guess you need us to go out and kill the accommodators when they are discovered" said Matt.

"Exactly, I know this is asking a lot of you all right now and I know it's been a difficult time for your family but I will need you to go out when you are needed" said the Earl referring to everyone there. They sat in silence for a moment when Tricia walked up.

"Tricia, it is so good to see you outside" Tyki said with a smile.

"It is good to see you as well. I have been trying to go outside more often" Tricia said quietly. "I thank you for bringing Matt back home I was worried about him."

"We all went out and Matt was more than willing to come home, he just needed some time to himself" said Tyki.

"Yes mother" said Matt with a warm smile. "I just needed some time to myself. But thank you for worrying about me, I promise to not disappear like that again." Tricia smiled back and began to walk into the house.

"Is everything alright darling" asked Sheril.

"Yes, I just need to head inside, I am not feeling that well."

"Go inside and get some rest" Sheril said kindly. Tricia nodded her head and entered the house. "I do so love this family" said Sheril.

"We know" said Tyki. "You've said it many times before." The Earl finished his tea and stood up.

"Well I should be going there is much to do and so little time" said the Earl. "I will call you when you are needed, until then relax a little bit." With that said the Earl left them.

"I wonder how everyone else is doing" said Matt as he stretched his arms.

"Well you would know if you attended Wisely's funeral" Road said a bit harshly.

"I thought I told you I needed to be alone."

"Yeah, yeah I'm sure that was it" said Road, obviously trying to provoke him. "If you ask me I think you couldn't face Wisely again." Matt was getting mad now he stood up out of his chair and the ground around them began to shake a little.

"Cut it out Road" said Matt. Road got off Sheril's lap and began to slowly walk around the table, behind Matt, arms behind her back.

"No, I don't think I will" said Road. "After all, it really was your fault." When Matt heard this he went into his Noah form, Road simply gave an evil grin, her plan obviously working. She began to walk into the back yard.

"Seriously Road stop it" said Matt as he turned around, the ground was now shaking violently.

"Why don't you make me" said Road and she took off running into the yard. Matt immediately chased after her. Tyki was about to stand up to intervene but Sheril stopped him.

"Sheril, don't you think we should stop him" asked Tyki who was a bit surprised that Sheril stopped him.

"No, Road is helping Matt right now" Sheril said with a smile as he watched Matt chase after Road.

"I really don't see how making Matt upset will help anything" said Tyki.

"Believe me, Matt will feel better by the time he gets back."

Road ran into the hedge maze that was in the massive yard with Matt right behind her. Matt tried to follow her in the maze but soon found himself lost; he had never made it through this maze by himself because he always got lost. After a moment Matt stopped running and stood in place looking around, not knowing where to go. He thought about destroying the maze but that would cause more damage than necessary. Suddenly several candles flew out of the hedges and nearly hit Matt. Matt looked at where the candles came from but at the same time more candles shot out behind Matt. Matt moved out of the way and the candles passed through the hedges. Matt created a pillar of stone to raise himself above the hedges. Matt scanned the maze and saw Road skipping through the maze. When Matt saw that she was close by he jumped down at her.

Road was skipping when she felt the ground shake again. Realizing that Matt had just created something she looked up to see Matt was falling from the sky. She took a few steps back as Matt hit the ground with a bang. He immediately lunged at Road which caught her off guard causing her to get knocked to the ground. Road tried to get up but Matt held her down. When she looked at him she could tell he was still mad.

"I've got you now" said Matt a little out of breath from sprinting but Road then managed to punch him in the gut which knocked the wind out of him; she punched much harder than he had expected. Matt slumped to the ground as Road scrambled to her feet. She took a quick look at Matt, laughed, and then ran away.

It took Matt a moment to get his wind back before standing back up. He realized that Road had escaped and then raised another stone pillar to allow him to see the entire maze. After a moment of scanning the maze he saw Road running out of the maze. The stone pillar extended over to the edge of the maze before Matt jumped to the ground. Road realizing that Matt had found her again transformed into her Noah form and summoned dozens of candles and began throwing them at Matt. Matt began to dodge Road's candles but a few of them managed to tear parts of Matt's clothes. Eventually he stopped running and kicked the ground with his heel. A small rock rose from the ground right in front of Road causing her to trip and fall on her stomach. Matt ginned a little as he watched Road fall. Road rolled over and threw a few more candles at Matt who easily dodged them and then began to run towards her. Road got up and tried to run away but a stone hand grabbed her ankle which stopped her from running. She turned back and saw that Matt was standing right in front of her, a grin on his face.

"You're not going anywhere" said Matt. Road could tell that his tone of voice changed, he seemed happier. She tried to punch Matt again but he grabbed her arm and bent it behind her back. "That's not going to work a second time" Matt said confidently, then Road kicked him in the shin and Matt leapt back on one leg as he held the other in pain, once again he underestimated her, but he was glad she didn't try to kick him anywhere else.

Because Matt lost his concentration the stone hand around her ankle released and Road took off again. Matt saw that she was getting away and was about to go after her when he lost his balance and fell to the ground. As he hit the ground he saw that she was about to reenter the maze.

"Not again" Matt said to himself and he slammed his fist on the ground. As he did a large stone hand wrapped itself around Road, completely immobilized. Matt got to his feet and walked over to Road.

"Looks like you got me" Road said with a grin.

"Looks like it" said Matt. He raised his fist in the air and gently hit Road on the top of her head with the side of her fist. "Don't do that again." Road looked at Matt and saw in his eyes that he was in a better mood.

"Feeling better" Road asked Matt, even though she knew the answer.

"Yeah" said Matt with a smile. "Next time though try not getting me so upset before trying to play games with me again" said Matt as the stone hand released Road.

"But you wouldn't have played if I didn't get you upset" said Road giving Matt and innocent look which made Matt laugh.

"You're absolutely right, I wouldn't have played your little game" said Matt. The two then began to walk back to the mansion.

* * *

><p>Tyki and Sheril were still sitting on the porch when they saw Matt and Road, who were both in their white form, returning from the yard. They could see that Matt had a smile on his face again as he talked to Road about something.<p>

"You see, I told you he would be better by the time he got back" said Sheril as he took a sip of some tea that was brought to them.

"I guess you were right" said Tyki. "But how did you know that whatever she did would work?"

"Because Road did the same exact thing when Matt first arrived at our house. You weren't there the first few weeks of Matt being here but he was extremely depressed. It wasn't until Road got him to start chasing her out of sheer anger that he finally started to feel better."

"That's a strange way of helping" said Tyki. "But then again this is Road we're talking about."

"That's right; even I don't know what she did exactly. All I know is that when Matt chased after her he was infuriated with her. By the time they got back though they were best friends." Tyki nodded as they watched the two approached the porch.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 42 coming soon!**

**This was a fun chapter to write (especially the part where Matt chased after Road). This chapter is just filler in between arcs while I figure out the next arc, but is still important to the story as a whole. I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time!**


	42. Battle at the Colosseum

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

It had been 4 days since Matt had returned to the Kamelot Mansion and things had been fairly quiet for the Kamelot family. It was around mid-day when there was a knock at the front door. A few minutes later a butler entered Sheril's study on the first floor. Sheril was working on some paperwork when the butler walked in.

"Yes what is it" asked Sheril without looking up from his work.

"Sorry to intrude but the Earl is here to see you sir" said the butler and the Millennium Earl entered the room. Sheril immediately stopped what he was doing and went to great the Earl.

"That will be all" Sheril said to the butler who then left the room, he then turned to the Earl. "Lord Millennium, how can I be of assistance to you today?"

"Can't a friend come by and pay a visit every once in a while" the Earl asked with a smile.

"Well yes, but with everything going on now I would assume that you are here to give us work."

"Well I'll admit that there is an assignment that needs to be taken care of but I decided to pay you a visit rather than call."

"I see. Well shall we take our business to another room" asked Sheril.

"Actually I'm here to see Matt do you know where he his" asked the Earl.

"Matt? Yeah he's out back with Road and Tyki should I call him in?"

"Please do" said the Earl and Sheril led the Earl out of the room. As they were approaching the back of the house they heard a loud explosion that seemed to come from outside. Sheril quickly rushed to see what the problem was while the Earl walked. Sheril ran outside and saw a small crater with Matt laying in it. Tyki was shaking his head and Road was rolling on the ground laughing.  
>"Matt are you alright" asked Sheril as he ran up to the crater. As he approached he saw that Matt was laughing as he laid on the ground.<p>

"Yeah I'm fine" said Matt as he stopped laughing and stood back up taking a looka t his clothes to make sure they weren't ruined. He scanned his long sleeve shirt and pants but found nothing wrong with them and gave a sigh of relief, he didn't want to ruin two sets of clothes in under a week.

"What on earth happened out here?"

"I was trying a new ability but it sort of backfired" said Matt as he scratched the back of his head.

"You should have seen it" said Road in between laughs. "It was hilarious."

"Quiet Road" said Matt as he shot a quick glare at Road who didn't see it.

"It's a good thing Tricia left the mansion earlier otherwise this would've been hard to explain" said Tyki.

"Yes, it's going to be a pain to clean this up though" said Sheril. "Seriously Matt couldn't you have done this somewhere else? You could have asked Road to create a separate dimension for you to do this."

I hadn't thought about that" said Matt which made Sheril sigh.

"Well as long as you're alright then I suppose it doesn't matter, I'll just have to get someone over here and clean this mess up." At that moment the Earl walked up behind Sheril.

"Quite the mess we have here" said the Earl.

"Lord Millennium, what are you doing here" asked Matt.

"I'm glad you asked I have a mission for you and you will be taking Road with you again." Road stopped laughing when she heard her name.

"Wait, why do I have to go on the mission? Can't you send Tyki" complained Road.

"You two work best together, so it should be obvious why you would join him on a mission" said the Earl.

"Fine" said Road as she stood up and brushed herself off. "What are we doing?"

"You two will be killing some accommodators today. A small group of exorcists were spotted escorting them through Rome, we know that they will be travelling by the Coliseum, that should make an excellent ambush spot.

"Doesn't seem like one to me" said Matt.

"I think he means we should just wait for them there and we just kill them when they show up" Road said with a smile.

"I guess. How many exorcists did you say there were?"

"About 3" said the Earl.

"Then I guess we'll be back soon, I doubt they'll put up much of a challenge." As Matt said this Road summoned her door and the two walked through. When the door vanished Sheril sighed and looked back at the crater Matt had left.

"I had forgotten how much damage he done to the house before he left" said Sheril.

"If I remember correctly, Road was contributed a lot to that damage" Tyki pointed out.

"That's nonsense! Road would never do that" Sheril protested.

"Keep telling yourself that" said Tyki as he rolled his eyes.

* * *

><p>Road and Matt arrived outside of the Coliseum and saw that the exorcists weren't there.<p>

"Are we early" asked Matt.

"Yeah, it looks like it" said Road.

"I really didn't want to wait around but I guess we have no choice." With that said a stone pillar lifted Matt up to the second level of the Coliseum and sat on the edge of one of the open arches on the wall. The pillar then sank back into the ground.

"Hey what about me" yelled Road. Matt looked down at her and laughed.

"I guess you'll just have to stay down there" said Matt and a candle immediately flew by his head. "Ok, ok, you give a very strong argument there." As he said this, a long, stair-like pillar rose from the ground and Road walked up and took a seat next to Matt as the pillar sank back into the ground.

A few hours passed and Matt was now lying down on the platform keeping his legs dangling over the edge when Road nudged him, he leaned back up and looked where Road was pointing. Right below them walking through was the group of exorcists that the Earl had sent them to kill. Matt then got an evil smile.

"Well, well, look who finally decided to show up" said Matt calling down to the exorcists below. The exorcists looked up and saw the 2 Noah sitting there and activated their innocence.

"It looks like it's the 9th and 15th apostles" said one of the exorcists.

"The 15th? But none of us are allowed to fight him" said the other.

"We need to get these accommodators back to headquarters. Luke and I will hold the Noah off as long as we can, while you take the accommodators and get them to safety. The exorcist nodded and then took the accommodators and fled the area. While the other two exorcists turned their attention back to Matt.

"Running isn't going to help anyone" Matt said to the exorcists then he slid off the edge and fell to the ground. Matt landed on his feet and as he bent his legs a line of stone rose and sank into the ground like a wave until it reached the nearest exorcist where the stone threw him into the air. As he flew in the air he was hit by several of Road's candles before hitting the ground with a loud thud.

"Luke" yelled the other exorcist who was carrying what looked to be a one-handed Morningstar. The exorcist then looked back at Matt and charged at him. Matt didn't even flinch as the exorcist swung his weapon. The Morningstar hit the top of Matt's left arm and Matt didn't even budge. As the exorcist pulled his weapon back it tore off Matt's sleeve revealing the pitch black cursed arm. Matt looked at his arm and sighed.

"I actually liked this shirt" Matt said in an upset tone. The exorcist panicked and tried to attack again. As he raised his arm in the air he immediately froze in shock. He looked down to see that a spike extended from the ground and had pierced his chest. The exorcist looked back at Matt as he dropped his weapon then collapsed to the ground.

"Hey can I come down now" asked Road, Matt looked up at her.

"You were the one who wanted to go up there" said Matt as a small stone pillar rose up to Road, then brought her back down.

"So, should we go take care of the rest" asked Road.

"I guess, I don't want to hear the Earl complain about yet another failed mission" said Matt and the two gave chase to the group.

After a few minutes the two finally caught up to the fleeing exorcist and accommodators. Matt created a stone wall to block their path. The group stopped and turned around as the exorcist stood in front of them.

"I won't let you harm these people" said the exorcist but as soon as he said that he noticed a shadow begin to grow over his own shadow. He looked back and saw that the wall that had blocked them off was now falling. He tried to dive out of the way but his lower half was crushed by the stone as well as the accommodators. The exorcist screamed in pain as Matt walked up to him.

"Save your breath" said Matt, "It won't do you any good anymore." The exorcist ignored him and continued to scream. Matt became irritated by the constant screaming. "Road, candle" said Matt as he held his hand out to Road without looking back. Road placed one of her candles in his hand and he took it and plunged it into the exorcist's neck. There were a few muffled gargles before the exorcist died.

"Wow, that was pretty cruel for you Matt" said Road as Matt stood back up.

"Yeah well I told you I would make the Black Order pay for killing Wisely" said Matt. "And besides I eased his passing from this world so it wasn't that cruel."

"I was talking about the rock" said Road.

"Oh…Yeah that might have been a little cruel" agreed Matt. "Can we go now?"

"Why?"

"Because I want to go home, this place bores me." Road nodded in agreement and she summoned her door.

The two arrived back in the backyard of the mansion and immediately went into their white forms. They saw several people working on the hole Matt created. They turned back to the house to see that Sheril was sitting on the porch with Tyki.

"Welcome back" Sheril said with a smile. "I take it everything went well?"

"Yes, killed everyone and even destroyed the innocence they carried as weapons" said Matt.

"That's good, I'll let the Earl know immediately" said Sheril. Then he stood up and entered the house. Matt beat Road to the seat which caused her to hit Matt in the arm.

"Jerk" said Road as she walked over to Tyki and sat on his lap.

"There are plenty of other chairs, you can always use one of those" Matt pointed out.

"Matt you look upset" said Tyki.

"Not upset, just bored. The exorcists didn't put up much of a fight" said Matt.

"I see, well you could have toyed with them for a while like you usually do."

"I wasn't actually in the mood to do that" said Matt as he relaxed into the chair and stared out into the yard.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 43 coming soon!**

**This was another filler chapter that was written so I can figure out the next arc. I decided to add a little action to it to change the pace a little but kept it fairly tamed. However I hope you enjoyed reading it.**

**Quick announcement: So there will be a guest star coming to the story from the story Noah oh Balance, by SpiderWraith. If you've never read any of the stroyies you should definitely check it out (see my favorites in my page, or just search for it), the story is really good (also, check out her other story Shiroi Tenshi as well). I haven't decided when the guest star will come in but it will be soon. Until next time!**


	43. Return to the Old Headquarters

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

A week passed since Matt and Road's returned from their last mission and things were going well for the Kamelot family, except for Matt who was trying to learn a new technique from Majnun which constantly blew up in his face leaving craters all over the yard; much to Sheril's horror. One day, Matt was working with Tyki on improving his stone armor, because he had given up on the new ability for a little while, when Sheril walked up to them.

"Matt, the Earl has another mission for you" said Sheril. Matt turned to Sheril, exhausted from training with Tyki.

"Can't it wait" said Matt, "I'm kind of tired."

"Well yes, but he told me to let you know in advance."

"Look Sheril, I know the mission is important but" Matt cut himself off when Sheril's words sank in. "Wait, what?"

"I said the mission can wait, the mission begins tomorrow. I do have to let you know about the mission though."

"Oh" said Matt who was a bit embarrassed that he jumped to conclusions. "What's the mission?"

"Well, there are two parts to this mission. I take it you remember the old exorcist headquarters" asked Sheril.

"Sort of, those days are a bit of a haze because at the time Majnun was hell bent on taking over my mind, but that was the place I destroyed right?"

"Yes, well apparently the Black Order is looking for something back in the ruins of the old headquarters and the Earl wants you to go out there and find out what they are looking for, preferably retrieve or destroy whatever it is."

"And the second part" asked Matt.

"Yes well I am sure you are familiar with the live innocence called Apocryphos" asked Sheril.

"I've heard of him, he's the one that Tyki fought back when they saved Allen right?"

"That's the one. It appears that he will be joining the group who will be going to the ruins. The Earl wants you to capture him, and if you can't capture him, kill him."

"That's the person that even Tyki couldn't beat and beat Road in one punch."

"It was because I was protecting Allen" said Road who walked up to them.

"Road, when did you get here" Matt asked a bit surprised to see her here.

"Just now, didn't you notice me walking up?"

"No, you're so small that I could easily miss you" Matt said with a grin, obviously teasing her. Road scowled at Matt but didn't do much else to get back at him. Sheril looked at the two of them to make sure that they had finished their little conversation before continuing.

"Anyways, the Earl wants you to go there and handle it" said Sheril.

"Well if Apocryphos is as tough as I've heard I'd rather not go in there alone" Matt admitted.

"Don't worry, Tyki and Road will be accompanying you" said Sheril assuring Matt.

"What about you" asked Matt.

"I have some diplomatic business I must take care of otherwise I would" said Sheril. "However, the Earl said that he would be sending Lulubell in my place, you will be meeting up with her tomorrow."

"Wait if the Black Order is looking for something there, wouldn't they have sent people to look for it already" asked Tyki.

"Well, they apparently have, however, Matt's little demolition caused the headquarters and half the mountain to fall down so getting back into the ruins has proven to be difficult for them."

"And how do we know that Apocryphos will be there" asked Matt.

"Inside sources have confirmed it. Apocryphos will be going to the site tomorrow to inspect the excavation."

"Do you think it's related to the heart" asked Road.

"It might be, if Apocryphos is getting involved" admitted Sheril.

"Well if that's it I think I'll get back to my training" said Matt.

"That's fine, just remember to be ready for tomorrow, it won't be an easy mission" said Sheril as he turned and headed back to the mansion. "Oh and try not to ruin the yard again today, you've cost me a small fortune this week."

"No promises" Matt muttered.

"What was that" asked Road who sort of heard what Matt said.

"I said that our missions never seem to be easy recently" Matt lied.

"The last one was" Road pointed out. She knew Matt lied about what he said but chose to ignore it.

"True, but that is a rare exception."

"So Matt what are you working on now" asked Road. "Is it that weird ability that keeps blowing up in your face? Because that would be funny to watch" Road said with a grin.

"No, I'm working on my stone armor; I want to try manipulating it so it has more offensive abilities. Right before Sheril came out I was sparring with Tyki a little bit but I have yet to lay a hit."

"That's because your abilities can't touch me" grinned Tyki. Matt, without looking at Tyki, raised his right hand and aimed it at Tyki. A small stone spike formed in the center of his hand then shot out at Tyki. The spike passed through Tyki and he laughed. "See, I told you." Matt then lunged at Tyki and went to punch him with his left arm. Tyki didn't move, he was going to let Matt's fist pass through him. However, Matt's fist hit Tyki square in the face, knocking him to the ground. Matt stood over Tyki, cracking his knuckles. Tyki looked at Matt with surprise and shock. Matt pointed to the dark red cross on his arm.

"Innocence, remember you can't phase through that" Matt said a bit sarcastically. Road was laughing at Tyki as he stood back up.

"I let you hit me that time" Tyki lied, Matt simply rolled his eyes.

"So can all you do now is shoot spikes from your hand" asked Road, pretending to be unimpressed.

"Well" said Matt, a bit hesitant to answer, "yes. But I just started a few hours ago ok? I have never tried to experiment with the armor ever since I learned to turn my arms into swords-well arm now."

"You are really lame sometimes" Road said, "you've had that armor ability ever since you awakened and you just now learned a new ability for it."

"Hey, it's not easy" complained Matt . "And besides, I can do more abilities than you" said Matt turning the tables on Road. "You are the eldest Noah yet you only have 3 useful abilities." Road became very upset at Matt and was about to attack him but Tyki stepped in the way.

"Ok, that's enough you two" said Tyki, hoping he could stop their argument before it escalated like it always did. "It won't do you any good if you two fight now and hurt each other."

"He's right you know" Matt said sending Road and evil grin. "There's no need to fight, tell you what, as a sign of showing you that I'm sorry I'll give you some candy." Road's eyes sparkled when Matt mentioned candy.

Matt entered his room and opened his closet door, inside was a large safe which had a note on top of it saying 'in case Road gets pissed at you'. Matt opened the safe and looked inside. There was a single bag of candy inside and Matt sighed.

"Man, I can't believe I've burned through a dozen bags of candy this week" said Matt as he grabbed the bag and closed the safe. Matt left his room to see Road waiting in anticipation. Matt tossed her the bag which she caught and immediately opened the bag and began eating the candy.

"Thanks Matt" Road said with a smile.

"No problem, I take it we're good now?" Road simply nodded and walked away. Matt let out another sigh and reentered his room.

* * *

><p>The next day Matt met Tyki and Road, who were all ready to leave, outside. He was wearing casual clothes again, along with his usual black cloak.<p>

"You're late" said Road.

"No I'm not" said Matt.

"You're here after both Tyki and I got here, therefore you're late."

"I hate your logic" said Matt which made Road laugh. She then summoned her door and the three of them walked through.

When they exited the door, Matt found himself in a familiar location. He was at the old battlefield where he had fought Allen, Lenalee, Lavi, and Kanda. The proof was in the craters scattered around the field along with a single large crater. Matt looked bothered by the sight. Road noticed Matt's look.

"Everything alright" asked Road, concerned.

"Yeah, just some hazy memories that's all" said Matt as the three of them began walking. After a moment they saw someone standing on the edge of a cliff that looked out to the old headquarters. They immediately recognized the person to be Lulubell. As they approached her, Lulubell turned around.

"Hello Lulubell, it's been a while" said Tyki. Lulubell just nodded at them. As they approached the cliff they could see the massive ruins of the old headquarters on the ground. There were tons of lights around it. Matt focused on the lights and saw that they were all campsites. The area was crawling with exorcists and finders.

"Hey Tyki, you've actually seen Apocryphos, what does he look like" asked Matt.

"He looks like a priest in his human form, he should stand out" said Tyki.

"Well then finding him should be easy, but getting into those ruins to find whatever they are looking for is another story" said Matt, his tone becoming serious.

"What do you mean" asked Road.

"The place is crawling with exorcists, we go down there and we may find ourselves overwhelmed."

"So what do you suggest" asked Tyki.

"Some sort of distraction, we need to pull some of those exorcists away from the site and also isolate Apocryphos" said Matt as he stood at the edge of the cliff.

"I have an idea" said Lulubell who was standing behind him.

"What's that" asked Matt as he looked down at the excavation sight. Suddenly he felt something push him. He lost his balance and his eyes widened in shock as he fell off the edge of the cliff.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 44 coming soon!**

**This chapter marks the start of a short, roughly 3 chapter arc that doesn't have a name yet. I am having fun writing it so I hope you enjoy reading it! Please let me know what you think of the chapter. Until next time!**


	44. The Battle Begins

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

"Lulubell, what have you done" yelled Road as she kneelt down at the cliff edge, looking down as she watched Matt fall.

"He said we needed a distraction" Lulubell said calmly. "He will be one."

"But you didn't have to push him off a cliff to do that" Road said, continuing to yell.

"I have to agree with Road. You went too far" said Tyki. Lulubell's expression didn't change at all as she watched Matt fall.

"He'll be fine" said Lulubell. "He's survived long falls before."

"He's never fallen from this distance" said Road. "At best the furthest he's ever jumped was 200ft (61m)" said Road, "This cliff is almost twice that size!" Lulubell continued to watch the fall. Then they all watched as Matt hit the ground. The ground shook violently as a cloud of dust rose over the ground.

* * *

><p>At the same time, a few finders were standing at the edge of the excavation site when they saw something fall from the cliff.<p>

"Hey, what's that" said the finder as he pointed to the small object.

"No idea" said the other finder as they watched as the object hit the ground. They saw the large cloud of dust rose above the ground, and a moment later they felt the ground shake violently, an after effect of the impact and nearly fell to the ground.

"What the hell was that" yelled the first finder, shocked at what just happened. The other finder didn't say anything, his eyes where wide with surprise. At the same time a group of exorcists ran up to the two finders.

"What was that noise" asked one of the exorcists.

"We have no idea" said the first finder. "We saw something fall from the cliffs out there. Next thing you know the ground is shaking."

"Do you think it's him" whispered one of the exorcists.

"Probably, but how did they find out" whispered another. At that moment Apocryphos, in his human disguise walked up with several more exorcists following him.

"It appears we are under attack" said Apocryphos as he looked out to the still looing dust cloud. "I've gathered several exorcists, you are to all go out there and take care of the situation."

"Yes Cardinal" said one of the exorcists and the group ran off towards the cliffs. Apocryphos watched the exorcists with great interest, not because he was interested in them, but was interested in who they were fighting.

* * *

><p>Matt laid on the ground, his body was killing him, sure he was able to turn the area around him into sand but the sheer force of the impact could not be absorbed. After a moment he slowly started to get up. He tried to look around but his vision was fairly blurry and his head was absolutely killing him.<p>

"Damn it Lulubell" Matt said to himself. "You're going to pay for that." Matt stumbled around as he finally stood up. He was completely disoriented; he rubbed his eyes with his fingers, hoping it would help. It didn't. Then he heard something coming his way, he looked in the direction the noise was coming from and he could see that exorcists were heading his way. He couldn't tell how many there were but he knew there were a fair number of them. Matt raised his hand and a spike formed in the center of his palm. He tried to aim, but with his bad eye sight and a wobbly hand, he could not aim. He shot the spike out and saw that he managed to hit one of them in the leg; he was aiming for the heart. Eventually the dust cloud went away and he could see a little better, but by the time he could he was completely surrounded.

* * *

><p>On top of the cliff the three Noah watched as the exorcists surrounded Matt.<p>

"See, he's fine" said Lulubell. "And he's pulled away a fair number of the exorcists that were guarding the site." Road still looked worried about Matt, she could tell even from this distance something was wrong.

"Something's not right with Matt" said Tyki. "He's not acting himself right now." Lulubell looked back down and saw that the usually reckless Matt was not attacking and was just standing there.

"It doesn't matter; we have to take this opportunity to attack while Matt has them distracted" said Lulubell.

"That's a bit cold" said Tyki, "even for you. The kid needs help it's obvious that the landing has affected him somehow."

"I'll go and help him, you two can handle the excavation site" said Road. Lulubell looked at Road with surprise, she hadn't expected this.

"Are you sure" asked Lulubell.

"Well someone has to help him" admitted Tyki. "Just be careful ok?"

"I will" said Road and Tyki and Lulubell ran off towards the excavation site. Road then summoned dozens of her candles she threw one of the candles herself before sending the rest down to the ground.

* * *

><p>The exorcists stared at Matt, innocence activated. Matt was a mess, he couldn't stand up straight, stumbling around, and breathing heavily. Some of them mistook him for a drunk.<p>

"Hey, is this really the Noah of Madness" one of the exorcists asked. "He looks pretty beat up for a Noah."

"Yeah that's him, there's no doubt about it" answered the exorcist next to him. "Something feels wrong though."

"What do you mean?"

"Well reports always said that the 9th apostle can usually be found with him but she doesn't seem to be" the exorcist was cut off. The exorcist next to him looked over to see a candle sticking out of the top of the exorcist's head as he fell to the ground. His eyes widened in horror as he looked up to see the rest of the candles hurtling towards them. Many of the exorcists were hit by the candles while the rest dove out of the way, trying to avoid the unexpected attack.

Road's door opened behind Matt and Road ran out. She created several more candles and hurled them at the surviving exorcists, all of the candles hit there mark. Road immediately scanned the bodies to make sure that none of them were still alive. Once she was certain that they were all dead she ran up to Matt.

"Matt, what's wrong? Are you ok" asked Road, concern in her voice. Matt, still taking in everything that just happened turned around, his vision began to focus more and Road didn't seem to be a big blur like the exorcists were a moment ago.

"I'm not entirely sure" said Matt as he stumbled his way towards Road almost falling to the ground if it weren't for Road who managed to catch him before he fell.

"Geez you're heavy" Road complained as Matt managed to pick himself off of Road.

"Sorry about that, my head is killing me" said Matt.

"Are you going to be ok" asked Road, "Should I send you home?" Matt shook his head.

"No, I think I'll be alright. I'm just a little woozy from the impact. I'll be ready to go in just a minute" Matt reassured.

After a minute, Matt's vision was back to normal, as well as everything else. His head still hurt but it was manageable. Then Matt looked to Road.

"I think we should get going. Tyki needs our help" said Matt, purposely leaving out Lulubell's name. Right now he didn't care what happened to her.

"Alright" said Road. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah I'm fine" Matt said with a smile. Then he saw that Road was looking at something behind him. He turned around to see a man dressed as a Cardinal walking towards them from the excavation site. He looked back to Road who's eyes were wide in a mix of fear and shock.

"Road, are you alright" asked Matt, realizing the irony of what he just said.

"It's him" said Road pointing to the man. "That's Apocryphos." Matt looked back at the man who was now a short distance away from them.

"Road stay behind me" said Matt remembering that Tyki said that Road was easily defeated by Apocryphos last time.

"I'll be fine" Road said stubbornly.

"I'm not going to risk losing you" said Matt as he went into his ultimate form. This time his form was a bit different than usual, this time even though his hair turned blonde it did not grow out which Road found odd. Apocryphos smiled a little.

"So we finally meet 15th apostle" said Apocryphos. "I must say I have been looking forward to meeting you in person." He then noticed Road. "And I see you brought the 9th apostle along with you. This is good. Now I can take out two of our more troubling enemies in one go."

"Like I'd let you lay a finger on her" said Matt as he used his speed to rush Apocryphos. Once he reached him he went to punch Apocryphos with his left arm. Apocryphos grabbed Matt's fist as he threw his punch.

"I see you haven't managed to remove Socalo's innocence from your arm" said Apocryphos. Suddenly Matt felt pain in his arm. He looked at it and saw that the cross on his arm began to have lines branch out and started to cover his arm. Eventually the red lines that extended from the cross were covering his entire arm and looked more like veins now.

"What are you doing" Matt asked as the pain worsened.

"I'm simply reminding the innocence that you are an enemy, it has become complacent in its dormant state. Suddenly Matt saw the skin on his arm begin to bulge in places. There was incredible pain, and then metal spikes shot out from under Matt's skin. Matt let out a scream of pain as he fell to his knees. Blood poured out of his arm as the spikes retracted back into his skin. Apocryphos looked surprised by this.

"It appears that the seal inside your arm is stronger than it looks" said Apocryphos, a bit disappointed. "No matter, there are other ways to break you." Apocryphos then placed his left hand on Matt's forehead. Matt's eyes widened as memories began pouring into his mind. But they weren't Apocryphos' memories that he saw, instead Matt saw memories that he wish he could forget.

"Stop" said Matt as he saw the image of Wisely's dead body. Every regret that Matt had begun pouring to the front of Matt's memories, and there were a lot of them. "Please stop" Matt pleaded as the memories continued to pour in, then he reached his first and greatest regret, the one memory that he had repressed for years; the killing of his mother. Tears began to pour out uncontrollably as Apocryphos continued to replay that memory over and over again. Evenually Matt fell over, eyes wide but unblinking. Road stared in horror as she stared at Matt.

"Your will has been broken" said Apocryphos, then he turned to Road. "It looks like I will have to deal with you yet again." Apocryphos stepped over Matt and as he began to walk towards Road he felt something grab his leg. He looked down to see that Matt had grabbed his leg and was laughing silently. "What's this? You can still fight" Apocryphos asked, surprised by what he saw. The laughing continued before Matt spoke.

"You've been down on your luck recently. To call on me in such a short amount of time" said Matt. Then he looked up at Apocryphos, a large grin on his face. Apocryphos saw that Matt's eyes turned completely black. "I hope you're stronger than the last group I fought" Majnun said with a grin. Apocryphos's eyes widened as a burst of Madness Aura caused a massive explosion around the two.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 45 coming soon!**

**This was an interesting chapter to write, mainly because there were several ways I could have wrote it. I hope that you enjoyed it. Let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	45. Majnun vs Apocryphos

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

The explosion could be seen clear as day from the excavation site where Tyki and Lulubell were, bodies of finders and exorcists surrounded them.

"Looks like Matt has begun to fight" said Tyki as he looked out at the explosion.

"I told you he was fine" said Lulubell.

"Perhaps, let's just hurry up and get what we came for so we can go over there and help."

"Is there any rush" asked Lulubell.

"Yeah, I think Apocryphos is over there fighting Matt and Road" said Tyki, he looked a little worried.

"What makes you say that" Lulubell asked in a monotone voice.

"Because he's not over here dealing with us" said Tyki as he ran into the ruins with Lulubell right behind him.

* * *

><p>Road had lifted her arms to protect herself when the explosion went off, she lowered them to see that Apocryphos was in his original form. Apocryphos stared at Matt who was now standing a few feet (meters) away. He looked at him with great interest. He had thought he broke the will of the Noah when he infiltrated his memories but for some reason Matt was standing there, ready to fight his body seemed to have his aura seeping out of him. Then he looked at Matt's completely black eyes, and then he realized what was going on.<p>

"You're not Matt are you, or at the very least Matt is not in control" said Apocryphos. Matt laughed a little.

"You're quick to catch on" said Majnun who was in control of Matt's body. "No, I'm not Matt."

"I heard of a Noah's memories taking control of a person before. I take it Matt is gone now?"

"No he's safe and sound within the deepest parts of his mind" Majnun said with an evil smile. "He's asked me to take care of you while he recovers from that little stunt you pulled on him." Matt swung his arm and a wave of Madness Aura flew out towards Apocryphos who jumped out of the way.

"How is that even possible" Apocryphos said to himself as he continued to dodge Matt's attacks. "A Noah has never been able to willingly bring forth their memories before, not like this at least." Then his eyes widened as he realized Matt had vanished. Matt appeared behind Apocryphos and punched him in the back which sent Apocryphos crashing into the ground. Matt created a rather large orb of Madness Aura with his right hand and threw it at Apocryphos that caused a large explosion. Matt stared at where Apocryphos laid and was not surprised in the least when he saw him stand back up. He was surprised however when he saw that he was undamamged.

"That's a shame" said Majnun. "I had hoped you'd just stayed down."

"Do not take me for the same innocence that you've fought before" said Apocryphos. "I am far more powerful than anything that you've faced before."

"Oh really" Majnun said with a grin. He was going to look forward to this. At the same time several arms burst from the ground and grabbed onto Apocryphos. He looked down and saw that the arms were attempting to drag him into the ground. There was a flash of green light and the arms vanished. Apocryphos looked back to Matt who was already moving in for another attack. Matt swung his fist at Apocryphos who side stepped the attack, pushed him down and punched Matt in the back as he went down. Matt coughed up a little blood as Apocryphos then kicked Matt in the side which sent him rolling across the ground. As Matt rolled what appeared to be a wave of Madness Aura fell down on Apocryphos. The wave then turned into a fist which tightly held Apocryphos and crashed him into the side of the cliff. The arm pulled back, Apocryphos still in hand and threw him in the opposite direction. By this point Matt was back on his feet, watching as the Madness Aura viciously attacked Apocryphos.

Apocryphos was about to get back up when the hand that once held him extended itself over him and then slammed into Apocryphos. Matt looked on with a smile, hoping that those attacks did the trick. The smile quickly vanished when he saw Apocryphos stand back up, again seemingly untouched by his attacks. At the same time Road created several candles and threw them at Apocryphos. A few managed to hit him which made Apocryphos attack Road. Majnun realized that if something were to happen to Road, Matt would most likely lock him away once again. So he rushed to intercept Apocryphos. Apocryphos was just about to reach Road when Matt punched him in the side. However, he took the hit and threw his own punch at Matt, this time however his fist glowed brightly. The punch hit Matt in the stomach causing more blood to be coughed up by Matt. Matt however grabbed Apocryphos' arm and threw him a distance away from Road.

"Road stay out of this fight" Majnun said calmly, "Let me fight him." Road didn't know what to say to that, but before she could even respond Matt had begun to rush Apocryphos. Matt threw a punch that was easily dodged by Apochryphos who took the opportunity to land several punches of his own and leading to a kick which caused Matt to fall to the ground. Apocryphos grabbed Matt's right arm and his hand began to dig into Matt's skin which caused him to scream in pain. As Matt screamed, a single Madness Aura hand tried to grab Apocryphos, but there was a flash of green and the hand vanished. Two more went to grab him, this time one of the hands managed to grab Apocryphos and threw him away from Matt. However, Apcryphos' hand was still imbedded in Matt's arm so Matt was thrown along with Apocryphos. The two hit the ground and began to roll, as they rolled Apocryphos' hand left Matt's arm causing blood to pour out from the wound. Despite the pain Matt was the first to recover, as he jumped back to put distance between them several level 1 Madness Clones emerged from the ground and began to pile on top of Apocryphos. Apocryphos could barely see Matt due to all the bodies but he saw Matt give an evil grin and raised his bleeding right arm in the air. Apocryphos' eyes widened as Matt snapped his fingers and every last Madness Clones exploded.

The area around Apocryphos was smoldering. Matt was about to turn and head to Road when he saw the green figure stand back up. Matt's eyes widened, his grin once again vanished. He had hoped that the last attack would do the trick. However as Matt looked at Apocryphos he got his grin returned to his face. Apocryphos' body was covered with cracks, Matt's attack did work, he didn't get the result he wanted, but he knew that Apocryphos could be hurt.

"How" Apocryphos asked as he breathed deeply. "How do you have such power? Matt was never at this level of power before, how is it now you have more power?"

"I don't have to answer that" Majnun said, preparing for another attack. This time, Apocryphos made the first move. Matt went to dodge but Apocryphos grabbed Matt's head and slammed it into the ground. Suddenly Majnun felt his memories were being probed. He kicked Apocryphos off of him and scrambled to get back up.

"I see" said Apocryphos. "The reason he has so much power right now compared to normally is because you've been holding back his potential. If you give Matt to much of your power, you will cease to exist, and Matt's memories, not yours, would be passed along in the reincarnation cycle." Majun glared at Apocryphos, and then he smiled.

"It's true, if Matt were to learn everything I would cease to exist, but so long as I have enough abilities that Matt can't use I will be safe and it will be me, not Matt whose memories will continue to survive, even if he implants his memories into someone else."

"So why let him live? You won't win here, why fight this fight when you can reincarnate later?"

"Because it is an inconvenience if he dies. You must have missed it when you probed my mind, but my reincarnation cycle is very long. In the history of the Noah, I have only ever reincarnated once before, and that was roughly 4,000 years ago. So you can imagine that I'm not too keen on dying any time soon." Majnun then summoned more level 1 Madness Clones and had them attack Apocryphos, none of them managed to reach Apocryphos, they were all far too slow. The two then lunged at each other they both formed fists and went to hit each other. Apocryphos' fist glowed green while Matt's had a black flame surround his fist. The two fists collided and the sheer force of the hit caused yet another explosion that sent both flying off in opposite directions.

Matt hit the ground and skidded to a halt and Road ran to his side. She checked on Matt only to see that he was unconscious with several burn marks that covered his exposed skin. She looked at Apochryphos who was slowly standing back up. Road summoned several candles but before she sent them flying, Tyki and Lulubell ran up to them. Apocryhos looked at the Noah and sighed.

"It doesn't look like I'll win this battle, so I'll take my leave" there was a blinding green light and when it went away they saw that Apocryphos was gone. Tyki turned his attention to Matt while Lulubell stared at where Apocryphos once stood.

"Is he alright" asked Tyki.

"He's just unconscious" said Road as she stared at Matt who reverted to his Noah form. "He suffered several injuries but I think he'll be alright."

"I told you he would be fine" Lulubell said and both Road and Tyki shot a glare at her.

"Matt may not of gotten hurt if it weren't for you" Road said angrily.

"She's right Lulubell, things probably would have gone better if you hadn't pushed Matt of the cliff" said Tyki, keeping his composure unlike Road. Neither of them liked the fact that Lulubell put their family member in danger.

"We completed half of the mission, we got what the Black Order came for" said Lulubell referencing a bag that she carried. "We won't catch or kill Apocryphos, so we should head back." At that moment an ark gate opened and everyone entered the ark gate as Tyki carried Matt and the gate closed immediately behind them.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 46 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter; I had a lot of fun writing it, even though it took forever to write. I really do enjoy writing major battles even though they can sometimes be difficult to write without repeating myself, so I hope you enjoyed it.**

**A quick announcement, there may not be an update tomorrow as my schedule for when I usually write is somewhat busy. I will try nonetheless to get the next chapter out but don't be surprised if the chapter doesn't come out until late tomorrow or the day after. Again I apologize but it's unavoidable.**

**Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	46. Who You Can Trust

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

**Warning: there is a bit of strong language in the chapter, one of the reasons this is rated T.**

Matt opened his eyes and he found himself in his old room in the ark. It didn't take long for him to realize that he was not alone in the room. He looked over and saw that Road and Tyki were sitting on the couch, Tyki was reading on of Matt's books while Road appeared to be sleeping. Matt leaned up which caught Tyki's attention.

"Glad to see you're awake" Tyki said with a smile, Road didn't look, she was definatly sleeping.

"How long was I out for" Matt asked as he rubbed his head, he noticed a bandage on his right arm.

"Only a few hours, we thought you were going to be out longer but I'm glad to see that you're awake" said Tyki as he stood up and walked up to Matt.

"What happened to Apocryphos" asked Matt.

"He fled when Lulubell and I returned from the excavation site. He looked pretty beat up." Hearing Lulubell's name enraged Matt and Tyki could tell. Matt tried to get up but Tyki pushed him back onto the bed.

"Let me out Tyki" Matt said angrily.

"Not a chance" Tyki said stubbornly. "The Earl asked me to watch after you to make sure you didn't go after Lulubell. He figured you might be upset with her."

"You're damn right I'm upset with her. She pushed me off a cliff" yelled Matt, which woke up Road.

"Now Matt, I'm sure the Earl will speak to her about her actions" said Tyki, trying to calm Matt down. He did not want this to escalate. "There is no need for you to confront her." Matt sat on his bed for a moment and he looked like he calmed down. After a moment he looked at Tyki.

"Hey Tyki, what time is it? Is it almost dinner? I'm starving" Matt said in a friendly voice.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact it is dinner. The Earl has the Noah who are not on missions here having dinner with him." Tyki immediately covered his mouth, realizing what he just said. Matt gave an evil grin.

"Thank you Tyki" said Matt as he shot up out of bed and grabbed his cloak that was lying on a chair. Road simply watched Matt as he left the room.

"Road, why didn't you stop him from leaving" Tyki asked.

"What are you talking about Tyki? Matt is going to have dinner" Road said innocently, she didn't know what Tyki was talking about. Tyki shook his head in disbelief.

"Weren't you paying attention?"

"No."

"Matt is pissed off at Lulubell. And where do you think Lulubell is right now?" Road's eyes widened when she realized what that meant. The two ran out of the room and saw that Matt was nowhere to be found so they immediately started running towards the dining hall.

* * *

><p>In the dining hall, 6 of the Noah were sitting at the large table, Lulubell sat at the right hand of the Earl. As they ate they heard the door to the room burst open they all looked back to see Matt storming into the room, a look of sheer anger on his face.<p>

"Ah, Matt so good to see that you are awake so soon" the Earl said kindly but Matt ignored him. Matt raised his right arm and aimed it at Lulubell and a spike formed out of his palm. At that point everyone in the room knew what he was trying to do. Five of the Noah tried to stand up but stone hands rose from the ground and wrapped around their chairs, immobilizing them. Matt then shot the spike at Lulubell who didn't even flinch as the spike missed her head my mere inches (centimeters) and imbedded itself in the side of her chair. Matt walked up to the end of the table; another spike was forming in his palm.

"Next time I won't miss" said Matt; pure anger could be heard in his voice.

"Now Matt, I know Lulubell acted a bit foolishly but please do not take out your anger on her" said the Earl who was trying to calm Matt down. At the same time Tyki and Road entered the room, and saw what was going on.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't take out my anger on her. She pushed me of a fucking cliff" yelled Matt. "She left me down there for dead! She betrayed my trust, and for that she must pay!"

"Now Matt, Lulubell had no intention of leaving you there for dead, after all, Road did come to your aid."

"Actually Lord Millennium" said Road, who was now defending Matt, "Lulubell did leave Matt. I helped Matt on my own will. Lulubell wanted us to move on and enter the excavation sight." Matt his head and looked at Road. He wasn't sure why, but he was surprised that she was defending him here.

"Is that so" the Earl said with interest. "Lulubell, you never mentioned that you had left Matt without having someone going to help him."

"Road volunteered herself, I saw no reason to mention that" said Lulubell, her expression remained blank.

"It is something that you should have mentioned. We Noah look after another, and you are in a lot of trouble for abandoning Matt for the mission" said the Earl, and then he turned his attention back to Matt, who was still furious. "Matt I am so sorry about this. Rest assured, Lulubell will receive consequences for her actions, I do not want you to do anything else. Why don't you go home and rest for a while. Clear your mind of this and use it to forgive Lulubell. Can you do that for me?" Matt looked at the Earl, he was still angry, but he saw nothing good out of killing, or even hurting Lulubell.

"Fine" said Matt. "But I refuse to work with anyone outside of the Kamelot family ever again." Matt then turned around and began to leave the room.

"What about her" asked the Earl, who was referring to someone that Matt knew of. "You two were always on good terms and got along well. Would you go on a mission with her?" Matt turned around.

"Why is she coming back" asked Matt curiously.

"In time, yes. But it won't be for a little while. I simply wanted to know, seeing as you seem so insistent on working with only a few of us."

"I cannot say" said Matt as he left the room. Tyki and Road looked at the Earl then followed after Matt. As Matt left the room the stone hands that were holding all of the other Noah released and sunk back into the ground.

* * *

><p>"Matt wait up" yelled Road as she ran after Matt who was still walking the hallways of the ark. Matt stopped walking allowing Tyki and Road to catch up to him.<p>

"What is it" Matt said in a cold voice.

"We just wanted to make sure that you were alright" said Tyki.

"I'm fine" said Matt. "I'm just mad at Lulubell."

"We know, and now so does pretty much everyone else" said Road jokingly. Matt turned to Road and smiled a little.

"Hey Road, thanks for standing up for me" said Matt.

"That's what family is for" Road said with a smile.

"I know, and I'm grateful. But I don't think I'll be able to trust Lulubell again."

"Next time you can push her off the cliff" said Road. Matt couldn't help but laugh. He felt better after laughing for a bit.

"Again, thank you Road."

"No problem" said Road as she strolled by him and summoned her door.

"Hey what about me" said Tyki.

"What about you" Matt said with a grin. "I didn't see you help me."

"I never had the chance to" said Tyki. Matt sighed playfully.

"Honestly, what kind of uncle are you. Not coming to the defense of your own nephew." Tyki stared at Matt in surprise; Matt had never called him that before and never once referred to himself as his nephew. Matt stared at Tyki and flicked Tyki on his forehead. Both Matt and Road laughed as they entered her door. Tyki stood there a moment, smiled, and then followed them through the door back home.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 47 coming soon!**

**I know what you're thinking "Wanderer23432, you said you weren't going to do a chapter today" well I lied :D. I felt bad about not uploading, and there was no reason for stopping the story for a day. I really only want to temporarily stop the story if I get a writer's block or I can't physically type the story.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this short chapter, I don't like writing them this short (but I was a little pressed on time). Either way, that ends this current arc which would be called "Majnun's Secret". I will probably add some filler in between this arc and the next arc, just as an announcement. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter, it really does help motivate me! Until next time!**


	47. Stress Relief

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC**

Matt, Tyki, and Road exited Road's door and found themselves in front of the Kamelot mansion walking towards the front door. As they walked Road and Tyki looked at Matt, who was walking in front of them, worriedly. Both Tyki and Road had returned to their white forms, which was usual for them when they were at the mansion. However, Matt was still in his Noah form. Now this wouldn't be a problem if they were still in the ark but when Matt was in at the mansion he was always I his white form unless he was doing something with Road. It was clear that he was still upset.

"Matt, are you still mad" asked Tyki, as he said this a massive stone wall rose from the ground to the right of where Matt was walking. Matt slammed his fist into the wall that he made and the wall shattered into pieces. Road and Tyki stared in disbelief, Matt was still mad. However as soon as the stone wall finished collapsing, Matt returned to his white form. Matt turned to them and gave them a smile.

"Sorry about that, I just needed to hit something. And I think father would be upset if I took my frustration out on the house. But don't worry, I'm better now." Tyki laughed under his breath, who was he trying to fool? However, he chose not to push it, Matt seemed like he was handling it fairly well so he was fine to leave things the way they were.

The 3 finally entered the house and as they walked up the stairs to the second floor Road pulled on Matt's sleeve. Matt turned to Road, wondering what she wanted.

"Hey Matt you wouldn't to have any more candy would you" asked Road. Matt thought about it for a moment, he hadn't refilled his safe so he knew that was empty.

"Let me check and see what I have. Matt entered his room and began searching his entire room. Unfortunately there wasn't any candy in his room. He looked to Road who gave Matt a puppy dog look and Matt sighed. "It looks like I'll have to go out and get some more" said Matt as he walked to his closet and took off his cloak and hung it up. He could feel Road's stare piercing him. He didn't want to bring her because then the while process would take forever, but he knew he wasn't going to win this one, nobody could resist "the look" Raod gives when she really wants something.

Matt sighed after a moment. "Road do you want to come with me" asked Matt. Road's eyes sparkled and nodded her head with excitement. "Well let me get changed into some more casual clothes and you can meet me back here in 5 minutes. The 5 minutes had passed and Matt was ready to go. He had changed into some regular pants and a dark buttoned short sleeved shirt. Because he was heading into town, Matt purposely bandaged his entire left arm; he didn't want to attract unwanted attention to himself because of his arm. He also changed the bandage on his right arm that covered the wound that Apocryphos gave him. He opened the door to his room and saw that Road had managed to change into more casual clothes as well and was sitting on the ground on the wall across from his door. The moment Road saw Matt she latched onto his arm and began to pull him to the front door.

The two made it two the bottom of the stairs leading to the main entrance of the mansion when they saw Sheril enter the house. Sheril looked at Road who was literally dragging Matt across the floor because he had fallen while on the stairs thanks to Road's pulling. Sheril couldn't help but laugh a little.

"Going somewhere you two" Sheril asked with a warm smile.

"Matt's taking me to the candy store in town to buy me candy" Road said with a smile. Sheril looked down at Matt who was still half way lying and sitting in the floor.

"Really" chuckled Sheril. "From this perspective it looks like you're forcing him to go." Road gave Sheril an innocent frown.

"But daddy, Matt asked if I wanted to go" said Road in an all too innocent voice. Sheril looked at Matt who bent his head back so that he could look at him.

"It's true father" said Matt with a smile. "I asked Road, she's just…in a hurry."

"I see well you two have fun now, come home soon" said Sheril and Road began to walk towards the door, Matt still being dragged. "Oh Matt, did you end up having anything to eat today" asked Sheril, he knew that he had nothing to eat at the ark.

"No" said Matt as Road opened the door, he was still being dragged.

"I will have the cooks have something ready for you when you get home then."

"That would be great" said Matt as he was dragged out of the house and the door shut behind him. Sheril simply shook his head with a smile on his face and walked away.

* * *

><p>Road and Matt decided to walk into town. Despite it being late, all the stores were open because of the weekend. Matt had stood up right when the door shut at the mansion so his clothes wouldn't get ruined. They eventually found their way to the candy shop. Road ran inside and began to scan all of the varieties of candy that the shop had to offer. Matt entered a few moments later and immediately walked up to the counter. He rang the bell that was on the counter and the store's owner walked out from the back room. He looked at Matt and smiled.<p>

"Matt, it's good to see you again" the owner said with a hearty smile.

"It's good to see you again Mr. Azevedo" Matt said politely." The man laughed a little.

"Please Matt, I've told you before you can call me Rodrigo. There is no need for the formalities."

"Forgive me, formality is something I'm used to doing" said Matt. Rodrigo didn't need Matt to explain any more, he was well aware of the family he belonged to.

"So I take it you're here for the usual" said Rodrigo.

"As a matter of fact I am. Do you think you could get it delivered to the mansion by tomorrow morning" asked Matt.

"Of course of course" said Rodrigo as he wrote something down on a piece of paper. "I must say, I delivered your last order only a week ago, have you already run out?"

"Unfortunately I have, my sister has had a bit of a sweet tooth recently" joked Matt as he looked back at Road who was staring at a barrels of various candy. "Well, more than usual at least." Rodrigo gave a hearty laugh.

"I can imagine from the stories you have told me before" said Rodrigo. Road looked up at Matt when she realized they were talking about her.

"Matt are you talking about me?"

"I was just reminding Rodrigo how much you like candy that's all" Matt said with a smle. Road shrugged and went back to looking.

"If I may ask Matt, what happened to your arm" asked Rodrigo as he pointed to Matt's bandaged arms. Matt looked at his arms, and then smiled.

"Well I burnt my left arm so I'm keeping it bandaged to keep it from infection. As for my right arm, well there was an accident at home that caused my arm to get cut by some glass. It's not too bad though."

"You're so reckless Matt" laughed Rodrigo.

"So I've been told" laughed Matt. At the same time Road placed a fairly large bag filled with candy on the counter.

"Well hello there Ms. Kamelot, I haven't seen you here in quite some time" said Rodrigo, he acted more politely only for the fact that they weren't as close of acquaintances like he was with Matt.

"Hello" Road said politely. Matt looked at the bag in a little disbelief, though he wasn't really surprised by the amount.

"Road, we'll be getting a large delivery of candy tomorrow don't you think this is just a bit too much?"

"Nope" said Road. Matt smiled at her then turned back to Rodrigo. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He pulled out several bills and handed it to Rodrigo.

"This is for the candy Road has with her. I will have the order paid for upon the delivery, as usual." Rodrigo nodded and began counting the money. Matt and Road began to walk out of the shop.

"Hold on Matt your change" said Rodrigo showing Matt the extra money; Matt had given him far too much.

"Keep the change" said Matt with a smile. He then waved to Rodrigo and left the shop with Road.

* * *

><p>As Matt and Road were heading home, the two decided to take a shortcut through an alley so that they could get home quicker. It was already dark and they wanted to get home as quickly as possible. As they walked down the alley Matt noticed a man leaning again one of the walls. The shadowy man looked over at them and began to walk towards them. Matt's gave a straight, uncaring look as the man stopped in front of them and pulled out a long knife.<p>

"Give me all your money or I'll kill you right here and now" said the man. Matt's face remained unchanged while Road continued to delightfully eat her candy; she completely ignored the man and had only stopped because Matt did.

"I don't think I will" said Matt. The thief looked surprised by Matt's answer but quickly regained composure.

"I'm not kidding; I'm going to kill you and the girl if you don't give me all your money."

"Touch her and you'll regret it" Matt said coldly but his expression remained unchanged. The thief then grabbed Matt and stabbed him in the stomach. Road continued to not care and Matt didn't even flinch. The thief pulled the knife out and was expecting Matt to fall over, but he was surprised to see that Matt looked as if he didn't care. He looked at the area where he stabbed Matt and there wasn't even any blood.

"What the hell" said the thief who now panicked a little, so he then grabbed Road pulled Road to him and put the edge of his knife to Road's throat. "Give me all of your money or I kill the girl.

"Ahhhh" said Road in a bland monotone voice, she really didn't seem to care whatsoever which confused the thief. The next thing he knew Matt grabbed the knife with his left hand and with one easy squeeze, shattered the blade. The thief saw that Matt's left hand was completely black as the blade had managed to cut the bandage but not the skin. He took a few steps backwards, releasing Road in shock. Matt began to walk towards him.

"I warned you not to touch her" said Matt as he went into his Noah form. The thief fell to the ground in horror and backed himself to the wall. Matt now had a sadistic smile as he loomed over the cowering thief.

"No, please don't hurt me! No! AHHH" Road simply stood there facing the opposite direction; she didn't even move after the thief released her, eating her candy, listening to the screams of pain coming from right behind her. After a moment the screaming stopped.

"Come on Road, let's go" said Matt, his tone of voice seemed much better than before. Road turned around and began to walk towards Matt. "Watch your step now" said Matt as Road skipped over a large pool of blood. The two continued to walk down the alley, leaving behind a completely unrecognizable corpse in the middle of the alley.

"You sound better" said Road as she looked at Matt as they walked.

"I guess I do" said Matt, "I guess I just needed to kill someone to get my mind off of Lulubell. Now I feel a lot better" Matt said with a satisfied smile. Road giggled a little.

"I'm surprised you don't have any blood on you" said Road.

"Yes well, one great thing about my stone armor is that I don't have to worry about dirtying my clothes" Matt said with a smile. Road laughed as the two left the alley and continued to walk home.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 48 coming soon!**

**Well this was a really fun chapter to write, for many reasons. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it. This was a filler chapter in preparation for the net arc; I don't know when the net one will be ready though. Please let me know what you thought of it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	48. Matt's Akuma part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

-Flashback-

Matt walked into the Earl's room that was filled with phones. He wanted to talk to the Earl about something that he had been thinking about for a while. The Earl had just finished talking on one of the phones when he saw Matt walk in.

"Ah Matt, how good to see you" said the Earl in an upbeat tone; something good must have happened. "What can I do for you today?"

Matt was hesitant to ask, he didn't know how the Earl would respond. "My lord, I have something I would like to ask of you" said Matt.

"Oh? What is it" asked the Earl, curious about what Matt wanted.

"I was wondering if I could have my own personal akuma. Kind of like what Lulubell has now." The Earl stared at Matt.

"Well I don't see the problem in that, I'll just instruct one of my akuma to follow you around."

"No, I want my own akuma, one that doesn't answer to you, but directly to me" said Matt. This time Matt could tell that the Earl was a bit upset.

"Now Matt, you know that the akuma are my creation, having just one akuma that doesn't answer to me could be a big problem."

"I know that but if this akuma were to answer to me it would still be loyal to the Noah, and because I answer to you the akuma would still be indirectly answering to you" said Matt hoping to convince the Earl."

"Matt, after what happened a year ago I don't think that would be such a good idea."

"Lord Millennium, how can you say that" said Matt a bit offended that the Earl didn't seem to trust him. "I will admit that Majnun almost took over a year ago but he's been taken care of, locked away in my mind. I have always been loyal to you, ever since you brought me to the ark! I have always followed your orders and never once defied you. I don't see why you can't trust me to have 1 akuma under my control!" The Earl could see that what he just said to Matt bothered him greatly. He knew that everything Matt said was true.

"I don't know" said the Earl unsure if he should agree to allow this.

"Let it be an experiment, I had a new idea for an akuma design that I wanted to try out and everything." This caught the Earl's attention and interest. If he could get a new kind of akuma then that would help him greatly in the war. And in the end, it would just be a single akuma. The Earl sighed.

"Very well Matt, as a gift for all your hard work since becoming a Noah I suppose I can grant you your request." Matt's eyes sparkled a little and would have hugged the Earl if he wasn't trying to keep his composure.

"Thank you Lord Millennium" said Matt and he left the room. The Earl laughed a little.

"So ambitious that one" the Earl said to himself as another phone began to ring.

* * *

><p>Matt spent the next 2 months working directly with the Skulls in designing this new akuma that Matt wanted. One of the things that was to change that Matt wanted was for the akuma to have more personality, he hated the fact that all the other akuma seemed so depressing for the most part. But most importantly he wanted an akuma that didn't have to evolve. Finally, after weeks of sleepless nights Matt stared triumphantly at the cage of a new level 0 akuma.<p>

Matt reentered the Earl's phone room where the Earl was once again busy at work. The Earl looked at Matt, a bit surprised to see him.

"I have finished the design Lord Millennium now all I need is a soul for it" said Matt.

"You are just in time then, there is someone who wishes for their loved one to come back" said the Earl and an ark gate opened up behind him. The Earl motioned for Matt to enter and Matt did so.

Matt found himself in a cemetery. He looked around and saw a small figure crying by the front of a grave. Matt walked up, still in his Noah form, to see that the person was a small girl, no older than 5 or 6. Matt was surprised to see this. Matt walked up to the girl and sat down next to her. The girl stopped crying for a moment and looked at Matt. Matt read the grave and he was a bit saddened by what he read. The gravestone said that the age of the person who died was the same age as the girl he was sitting next to. Matt immediately got rid of the sad feeling, now was not the time.

"I see you lost your sister" said Matt with a sad voice. The girl nodded. "I'm sorry to hear that, when I was 10 I lost my mother, so I know how you must feel." Matt looked at the girl again, her clothes were dirty and worn, she must be an orphan, which was good for Matt's plan; she wouldn't be missed. "You know, when I lost my mom, I met someone who was able to bring her back to life" Matt lied, the girl looked at Matt, confused.

"Really" asked the girl as she sniffled from the crying.

"Yes, and I was so happy that I wanted to make sure that nobody else would lose their loved ones. You know I can bring back your sister." The girl's eyes widened with hope. Matt could see this and he snapped his fingers. The modified level 0 akuma rose from the ground. The girl looked at the small frame, a bit scared. "All you have to do is call out your sister's name and she will come back to life." The girl walked up to the akuma shell and stared at it for a moment.

"Lily" the girl said and after a moment the akuma came to life, Lily's name written on its forehead. The akuma said nothing as it quickly killed the girl, but before the akuma took the skin of the now dead girl the body began to change. Matt watched as the akuma began to change shape and after a moment the akuma looked like a small dragon that was no bigger than his arm. Matt looked at the dragon with sparkles in his eyes, even though it was brand new Matt immediately grew an attachment to the akuma. He pats the tiny akuma on the head which it seemed to enjoy greatly.

"Well aren't you adorable Lily" Matt said warmly. "Now I have instructions for you. I want you to take this girl's appearance and go out and become stronger. After a year or so, or until you feel you are strong enough I want you to return to me ok?" The dragon nodded and took the appearance of the girl. Matt stood back up and entered the ark gate which closed behind him. The girl stared at where the gate once stood.

"Bye, daddy" said the akuma and ran off to complete her mission.

-End flashback-

Matt was sitting in the library, daydreaming about the akuma he had created; it had been so long since he saw her, he questioned if she was even still alive.

"Matt what are you thinking about" said Road who was lying on the couch across from him eating candy from a bowl as if it were popcorn. Matt snapped back to reality.

"Oh nothing much, just about how dumb that thief was last night and how good it felt killing him" said Matt, nobody but the Earl knew about Lily and for now he planned to keep it that way.

"Yeah, he was pretty stupid" laughed Road, "And now you're not mad at Lulubell right?"

"No, I'm still mad. I just don't want to kill her anymore. I doubt I'll ever really forgive her."

"Oh well" smiled Road, as long as he wasn't planning on killing anyone she really didn't care that much. At that moment a butler walked into the library. He scanned the room as if he was looking for someone.

"Yes, what is it" asked Matt.

"Master, have you seen Master Sheril" asked the butler.

"I haven't seen father all day, is there anything I can do?"

"Well it's just we have a visitor that was not expected and I don't know what if I should let them in."

"I see. Road and I will go and find father and he'll take care of it. You are dismissed." The butler nodded and left the room. Matt stood up and dragged Road out of the room, Road almost cried when the bowl of candy was left in the library.

"Why do I have to come" asked Road in an angry voice.

"Because I can't let you have fun all the time" Matt joked. As the two walked Tyki and Sheril walked out of another room. "Excellent, just who I was looking for" said Matt.

"Matt, you were looking for me" asked Sheril.

"Yes, apparently there is an unexpected guest at the door and the butler didn't know if he should allow them in. I told him you would deal with it personally." Sheril sighed, he really didn't want to but because of Matt's choice of words he had to deal with it. Sheril began to walk to the front door and Tyki accompanied him. Matt stood there with Road and after a moment Road turned around and began to walk back to the library. However Matt grabbed her arm and began pulling her with him.

"Come on Matt I want to eat my candy" complained Road.

"You've been eating candy all day" said Matt. "You can take a break for now."

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to see who's at the door" said Matt. He was interested about who would be at the door; they never had unexpected guests. Road scowled but followed Matt to the stairs.

The two reached the stairs and looked down. The front door was open and Tyki and Sheril were standing there looking down. He didn't see anybody in front of them so Matt was a little confused. Matt was about to turn to Road and allow her to return to the library when Road hit Matt over the head with a vase, shattering it. The force of the hit made Matt lose his balance and fall down the stairs. Unfortunately Matt forgot to release Road's arm and Road went tumbling down with him. The two hit the bottom of the stairs with a loud thud. Matt sat up and rubbed his head.

"Road, what the hell was that for" asked Matt as he stayed seated, a bit angry at Road.

"I wanted to go back to the library but you wouldn't let me" said Road with a pouty face.

"So you hit me over the head with a freaking vase" Matt yelled in disbelief. Sheril and Tyki looked back to see them arguing.

"Ok you two break it up" said Tyki as he walked over to them to separate them; these little quarrels seemed to come up a lot, he couldn't tell most of the time if they were made at each other or they were simply teasing one another.

As Tyki walked up to them Matt noticed the person standing at the door. It was a small girl, barley taller than 3ft (91cm). She had spikey brown hair and blue eyes. Matt stared at the girl, he knew who it was, but he couldn't believe that he was actually seeing it. Tyki saw that Matt noticed the girl.

"It's strange, the girl says she's looking for her dad, and insists that he is here" said Tyki looking back at the girl. The girl then looked over and noticed Matt her eyes widened and a bright smile came over her face. Sheril looked at the girl, confused as the girl ran towards Matt arm out.

"Daddy" the girl shouted with joy as she wrapped her small arms around Matt. Everyone, including Matt was shocked at what just happened. Matt looked at the girl who was now hugging him.

"Hold on, hold on" said Tyki. "What did she just call you?" Everyone just stared at Matt who now looked around at them.

"What" asked Matt, confused.

"Matt, is there something you're not telling us" asked Road.

"No, I mean, yes, I don't know" said Matt, he was now confusing himself, and the fact that the girl was still hugging him didn't help the situation.

"My son, he's grown up so fast" said Sheril, his eyes sparling.

"It's not like that" yelled Matt, embarrassed over what Sheril said. "You've got it all wrong, I swear!"

"Oh yeah? Then why is she calling you daddy" asked Road, a smirk on her face. Matt sighed and looked at the girl who was now staring at him with large eyes. He smiled and patted her on the head which she enjoyed greatly. Even though her calling him daddy was a surprise, he didn't seem to mind, after all it was the soul of a child he was dealing with. Matt stood up as he patted her.

"Everyone, this is Lily, she is my personal akuma" said Matt with a grin as he stood next the still clinging girl.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 49 coming soon!**

**This chapter is the start of a small arc; it will probably be 2 chapters long. This was interesting to write because I couldn't decide where to put the flashback. I decided to open with it and I hope I made the right choice. Lily will become a major character in the story in case you were wondering. Anyways, let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	49. Matt's Akuma part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

**Warning: there is some language in this chapter**

"Your own personal akuma" asked Tyki as the three Noah stared at the small girl clinging to Matt.

"Yeah, I created it myself about a year ago, and it's been out getting stringer since then" said Matt looking at the girl. "I was wondering how she was doing."

"So…why did she call you daddy" asked Road. Matt was about to say something but stopped himself.

"I have absolutely no idea" Matt said after thinking about it for a moment. "Lily, why do you call me daddy?" Lily stared at Matt for a moment.

"Because you are" Lily said in a high soft voice. Matt smiled and shook his head.

"Of course" said Matt, she didn't answer his question but he didn't want to argue with the child.

"Oh she is absolutely adorable" said Sheril, sparkles were seen in his eyes. He walked up to Lily and tried to pick her up but Lily hid behind Matt. Sheril looked at Lily with a sad look in his eyes, he wanted to hold the small girl. "What's wrong little one?"

"I think she's a bit shy" laughed Tyki as he walked up and patted Sheril on the back. Road now walked up to Matt, and peered behind Matt and looked at the hiding girl. Lily noticed that Road was looking at her and got scared and buried her face into Matt's back which caught him by surprise.

"Lily what are you doing" asked Matt.

"She's scary" said Lily, her voice muffled because she didn't move her face. Matt looked at Road and erupted into laughter. Road glared at Matt but he didn't care.

"Don't you worry about Road" said Matt after laughing for a bit. "She's not as scary as she looks. Well she is but that's not the point" Matt snickered, Road hit Matt over the head.

"How can this kid be an akuma" complained Road. "She acts like such a child."

"I agree with Road" said Tyki. "She seems more human than akuma." Sheril would've said something but he was still upset over the fact that Lily wouldn't let him pick her up.

"That's because she is a special akuma" said Matt, "like I said before, I personally created this akuma, from the original skeleton to retrieving the soul. The soul is that of a child so I would expect her to act like one."

"I see, what level is she" asked Tyki, now a bit interested.

"She doesn't have a level" said Matt; everyone looked at Matt with a confused look. "Let me explain, the Earl allowed me to create an experimental kind of akuma. Instead of levels, the akuma starts of small and grows as the akuma gets stronger. However, if I am correct, she will be able to adjust her height. I have not seen Lily since I turned her into an akuma, so I don't know how strong she is."

"Well why don't we find out" said Tyki.

"Sure, but we don't know where any exorcists are at the moment" said Matt.

"That may be true" said Sheril. "But if what you said is correct, then we should be able to get a good idea of how strong she is simply by her size.

"If you ask me she must not be very strong" said Road. "After all look how small she is."

"I was talking about her akuma form not her human form. So why don't we go to an open field and see for ourselves" said Matt Road then summoned her door and they all walked through.

* * *

><p>They found themselves in the middle of a large field in the middle of nowhere. While Matt wondered why she went to this place before, but ignored it. He looked at Lily who still insisted on clinging on to him.<p>

"Lily, I need you to do me a favor" said Matt as he kneeled down to her level. Lily looked at Matt in confusion. "I need you to go into your other form, show me how big you've grown" Matt said with a smile. Lily nodded and closed her eyes.

It happened extremely quickly Lily transformed into a massive dragon that was bigger than the Kamelot mansion.

"Holy shit" Road, Tyki and Sheril said at the same time. Then Road looked around.

"Hey where's Matt" asked Road.

Matt was laying on his stomach on the dragon's back, his eyes wide with surprise. After a moment of just laying he silently stood up and began to climb up the dragon's neck until he reached its head. Matt peered over the edge of Lily's head and looked into one of her eyes.

"So Lily" Matt said calmly. "You've grown a bit." Then Matt smiled. "I'm so proud of you." Matt could see a sparkle enter Lily's eye and Matt laughed. He looked back up and saw some people running towards them. As they got closer Matt recognized what they were wearing, they were exorcists. He looked back into Lily's eyes.

"Hey Lily, see those people running towards us? I want you to kill them." Lily looked at the exorcists running towards them and she opened her mouth.

On the ground Sheril, Tyki and Road were still not getting over the size of the dragon.

"How is she so big" asked Sheril.

"Well, Matt did say the stronger she became the larger she got" said Tyki. "So by that standard, she must be pretty strong." At the same time Road noticed the exorcists running towards them.

"Great, just what we needed right now, I really don't want to deal with the Black Order right now" said Road.

"I think Matt's taking care of it" said Sheril as he pointed up towards Lily's head. Tyki and Road looked up and saw Matt standing on top of the dragon, pointing in the direction of the exorcists, who were still a great distance away. They watched as Lily opened her mouth and a bright light began to form in her mouth. After a moment, Lily shot out a massive fireball that was launched at the exorcists. The fireball quickly made contact with the exorcists creating a massive explosion. The force of the explosion could be felt by the Noah's as well as the intense heat from the fireball. They just stared at the smoldering crater jaws dropped; they looked back at Lily, then back at the crater.

"What just happened" asked Road, barely managing to get the words out.

"I think that was a fireball" said Tyki, barely managing to speak just like Road. They looked back up at Lily, something seemed wrong. Lily hiccupped and there was a huge plume of smoke that surrounded Lily. The smoke cleared quickly and Lily was gone, and all they saw was Matt falling. Once Matt hit the ground the three Noah ran up to Matt.

"Matt are you alright" asked Road who was worried about Matt. Matt sat up, he was a little sore but he had a huge grin on his face.

"Where's Lily" asked Sheril. Matt smiled.

"Right behind me." Sheril, Road and Tyki looked behind Matt to see a tiny dragon sprawled out across the ground, she appeared to be sleeping. "She seemed to use up to much her power in that attack of hers and she reverted to her original size" said Matt.

"Why would she use so much power" asked Sheril as he went to pick up Lily.

"I think she was trying to impress Matt" said Tyki.

"You might be right about that" said Sheril as he held the tiny dragon in his arms; for some reason, even in this form, Lily seemed really cute. "She seemed really attached to Matt."

"So what do we do now" asked Road as she pat the tiny dragon as she slept.

"We head home" said Matt who stood up and took Lily from Sheril who resisted a bit. "There's no reason for us to stay here, and besides I'm tired." Road looked at Matt in surprise.

"Really? It's only been a few weeks since you last slept, usually you stay awake for much longer."

"True, but for some reason I'm really tired" said Matt as he yawned. Road summoned her door.

"What are going to do about Lily" Tyki asked Sheril.

"I don't mind her staying in the house, but she will have to stay in her human form while she is there. But I can tell Matt that tomorrow." Tyki smiled and the Noah entered Road's door to head home. Once Matt entered his room he placed the sleeping dragon down at the edge of his bed, got changed and fell asleep.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 50 coming soon!**

**This ends the introductory arc for Lily. Lily will remain a main character in the story. This chapter was difficult to write, I had a lot of ideas for the chapter and so the chapter may have seemed sloppy in comparison to other chapters and I apologize for that. I will most likely refine the chapter and publish a new one later on. I will make sure to let you know when/if it happens. Other than that let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	50. Matt's Akuma part 3

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt slept silently through the night. For some reason sleeping felt very good to him, unlike most times where sleeping was difficult and was filled with nightmares. This night however was different; this time he had no dreams whatsoever and because of that he was able to sleep soundly. Matt slept peacefully until he felt a little pressure on his chest. Matt opened his eyes; light was shining into his room through the window. He rubbed his eyes and went to sit up but he met resistance. He leaned his head up to see the Lily, who was back in her human form, was sitting in him, and looking at Matt with worried eyes.

"Lily, is everything alright" asked Matt as he managed to lean up.

"You wouldn't wake up daddy, I was worried" said Lily. Matt was taken back, this was the most words he's ever heard from her, but that wasn't saying much seeing as she said almost nothing yesterday. Matt smiled and patted her on the head.

"Daddy was sleeping Lily. There wasn't anything to worry about; I do that now and then." A shiver ran down his spine calling himself daddy was strange but he ignored it, he didn't feel Lily would stop calling him that so he might as well get used to it. Matt moved Lily to get up when a knock came to the door.

"Come in" said Matt and Sheril walked into the room. "Good morning father" Matt said with a smile.

"Good morning son" Sheril said warmly then he looked at Lily, "good morning Lily."

"Eek" said Lily that almost sounded like a chirp and she crawled behind Matt. Sheril's monocle fell off his eye and his jaw dropped; he was shocked that she was still hiding from him.

"Oh come now, I'm not that scary" said Sheril, while Matt laughed a little, he then turned to Lily.

"It's alright Lily, he isn't scary" said Matt as picked Lily up and placed her in front of him. Then he looked up at Sheril. "Is there something you needed?"

"As a matter of fact yes" said Sheril has placed his monocle back on his eye. "Actually there are two things. The first is that the Earl wants you to destroy some innocence. I know you don't like solo missions he said that you had to do this one on your own."

"I don't like it but judging from the sound of it the mission doesn't sound too difficult, plus I'll bring Lily with me so it will work out. What was the second thing that you wanted to say?"

"The second thing is that I will be hosting a dinner party tonight and I need you to attend it." Matt frowned.

"Must I? I really don't want to attend" complained Matt.

"Yes you have to attend, as Prime Minister I have to keep up appearances and that means that everyone attends."

"Does that include Lily" joked Matt.

"As a matter of fact yes, after all she is a member of the family if she serves you" said Tyki. Matt looked at him surprised.

"Don't you think she's a little young to be attending a party? And second of all is mother ok with is?"

"She will be fine, she will either be with you or either Tyki, Road, or I. As for your mother, she is alright with it, she doesn't mind."

"How is she doing" Matt asked a bit worried."

"She is still fairly ill, I'm afraid she will be bedridden for at least another day or two" Sheril frowned.

"I barely see her anymore" said Matt but then his attitude changed to a more positive one. "I'll see if I can't make it to the party. Can you watch Lily for me" asked Matt as he picked up Lily holding her out to Sheril who walked over to pick her up.

"Sure thing, while you get ready I'll go and get some clothes prepared for her" said Sheril as she picked Lily up who squirmed around trying to get back to Matt. Matt smiled at her.

"Don't worry Lily, stay with Sheril for now, I'll be come and get you as soon as I'm ready."

"Ok" Lily said quietly as she stopped squirming. Sheril nodded at Matt and left the room with Lily. Matt got out of bed and began to prepare for the day. After a quick shower Matt got dressed. Because he didn't want to bother changing later on Matt chose to put on one of his tuxedos. Matt put on a pair of white gloves, he looked at his left arm to make sure that none of his cursed arm was showing so he didn't have to try to hide it. However when he saw parts of his arm he wrapped a small bandage around his wrist. He then grabbed his top hat and placed it under his arm as he left his room.

* * *

><p>Matt walked into the library where he saw Tyki sitting on the couch while Road was sitting on the ground playing with Lily, which surprised Matt seeing as Lily just yesterday said she was scared of Road. Tyki looked up when he saw Matt enter the room.<p>

"Well someone looks sharp" said Tyki. "I know you have a mission right now but still, what's up with the outfit?"

"It's for the dinner party tonight" said Matt. "I don't really feel like getting changed after the mission." Matt then turned his attention to Lily who was still playing with Road. "Lily, I thought you were afraid of Road" Matt said with a grin, he emphasized the last part to bother Road, which worked as she shot Matt a quick glare.

"Road, gave me some candy" said Lily as she ran up to Matt. Road gave Matt a triumphant smile, apparently she believed that Matt was going to hold that over her head for a while; which was exactly what Matt was hoping to do.

"Well at least you're happy" said Matt, "What about Tyki?" Lily looked at Tyki who smiled at Lily who smiled back. Matt looked at both of them in surprise. "So, Tyki doesn't scare you?" Lily shook her head. "How strange, I wonder why that is" Matt said to himself.

"Hey Matt I have a question about Lily" said Tyki. "Why is it she is like this? I mean why is she so…" Tyki had trouble choosing the right words, "happy? I mean most akuma are rather cruel and malicious. Lily here acts the total opposite and she doesn't seemburdened like most akuma." Matt looked at Tyki.

"It's hard to explain, I'll make sure I tell you sometime but right now we have I have a mission to attend to and Lily will be coming with me. Road do you think you can open your door and leave it open until we return?"

"Sure thing" said Road and her door rose from the ground. Matt and Lily entered Road's door and when they exited they found themselves in a small town.

* * *

><p>Matt spent about an hour scanning the town looking for signs that the Black Order was here, but he didn't find any so he assumed he got there before them. Matt, instead of looking for the innocence himself went and sat on a rooftop at the edge of town with Lily sitting next to him as he waited to see some finders or exorcists walk through the area.<p>

"Hey Lily can you do me a favor" said Matt as the two sat on the roof; Matt had a rather large piece of cloth that he could sit on so he didn't ruin his tuxedo. Lily looked at Matt a bit confused.

"What is it daddy?"

"If you transform into your dragon form I want you to only grow to about half the size that you were yesterday. I don't want you using that size until you grow a bit stronger." Lily looked upset by this.

"But why? I'm stronger that way" Lily protested.

"Yes, you are but you don't have enough control of that power. Don't worry you will do just fine if you reduce your size, plus you would be too big to fight in a town or close quarters, I only ask of this because I care" said Matt with a serious look on his face.

"Alright" said Lily a bit sad, but she was happy to hear that he cared about her.

The two sat there for a few hours and Matt was about to call it quits but as he stood up he saw two exorcists leaving the town. Matt grinned as he recognized both of them though one did surprise him. Allen and Lavi were here. Matt placed Lily on his shoulder and held her in place as he leapt to the ground. Matt landed cleanly; his cursed hand was holding his top hat in place so it wouldn't fall off as he landed. Allen and Lavi were shocked to see the Noah landed in front of them. As Matt turned to them Lily leapt off of Matt's shoulder and landed on the ground.

"Allen Walker" said Matt in an upbeat tone. "I'm surprised to see you here, I'll have to let Road know I saw you." Allen didn't respond as he activated his innocence revealing Crown Clown. Matt frowned at the sight. "I had heard from Majnun that you had rejoined the Black Order, I really hoped that you would join your real family."

"You will never be part of my family" Allen said seriously as Lavi activated his innocence, ready to fight. Allen then noticed Lily who was standing just behind Matt.

"What's with the kid" asked Lavi.

"That kid is an akuma" Allen said seriously.

"You're kidding" Lavi said in disbelief, how could the Earl sink so low?" Matt overheard their conversation.

"Oh the Earl had nothing to do with this one" Matt said with a grin. "I created this one myself." Allen became infuriated; he couldn't stand that Matt could do something so cruel to a child.

"You're a monster" said Allen. "And I'm going to destroy that akuma and free her soul from that torment." Matt became very upset, he didn't like the fact that Allen threatened to destroy Lily.

"Why do you say she is in torment" Matt asked casually, masking his anger.

"Because all akuma are tortured souls, I've seen enough of them to know" sneered Allen.

"Then perhaps you should check again" said Matt. Allen looked back at Lily and focused on her soul. Then Allen's eyes widened. Normally, the soul of an akuma was wrapped in bandages and looked deformed in some way, curled up in the fetal position. But this akuma, this akuma was different. He saw the soul clear as day, the soul looked just like any other soul after he destroyed an akuma, and to his horror, the soul was smiling, she was happy!

"What the hell is this" Allen asked, a mix of confusion and anger in his voice. Matt grinned.

"Like I said, this akuma was created by me. The Earl allowed me to create a new kind of akuma. Unlike all other akuma, Lily here is happy as she is because the akuma frame she took over never tortured her. She was happy to be an akuma and happy to serve me. So tell me Allen Walker, do you still want to kill this akuma? Even though you know she isn't tormented?" Matt eagerly awaited his answer. Allen stood there, frozen. He didn't know what to do, usually he could easily destroy akuma because he knew when they were destroyed they would be free from torment. Now that wasn't the case and his world was turned upside down. However he convinced himself that it was a trick.

"Yes I will" said Allen and Matt frowned.

"Such a shame" he looked at Lily who looked like she was about to transform. Matt placed his hand on her shoulder and she looked up. Matt shook his head telling her not to and she nodded. Matt then looked back at the two exorcists. He couldn't sense any new innocence with them meaning there was no innocence to begin with. "Well I can tell that you two do not have any innocence that I care for right now, and frankly I don't even want to bother with this, I have things I need to do. Now if you'll excuse me" said Matt as he tipped his hat and Road's door appeared behind him. Matt was about to enter when he looked back at Allen. "You know something Allen, Tyki is right. You really are a monster, you betray your real family and rejoined your old one that branded you a traitor. You rejoined the very people you fear to hurt which will happen when the 14th finally awakens in you. I would feel bad for you but frankly you don't deserve it." When Matt finished speaking he entered the door which closed and disappeared behind him.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 51 coming soon!**

**Well another milestone for the story, 50 chapters! Thank you all so much for continuing to read my story, it means a lot to me that you are enjoying my story. I hope that I can continue to entertain you with future chapters. Also, thank you everyone who has reviewed throughout the chapters, it's been a great motivation for me and I hope you continue to review it. Anyways I can safely say that there will be more Shadow of Madness to come!**

**This is the official end to Lily's introduction arc (I know, I said the last chapter would be the end but there was more I needed to write about before I could really said I was done with this arc). I hope you enjoyed this chapter and hopefully like Lily. Please let me know what you thought of it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	51. The next mission

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt and Lily found themselves back inside the library in the mansion. As the door disappeared Matt noticed that Sheril was sitting on the couch. Sheril looked up at Matt and smiled.

"Welcome back, how did the mission go" asked Sheril as he stood up.

"Total failure" said Matt in an upset tone. "There wasn't any innocence in that town." Sheril looked at Matt in surprise.

"That's odd, the Earl ensured me that there would be a piece of innocence there" said SHeril as he thought about it. "So if there wasn't any innocence, why did you take so long? The dinner party will be beginning in only half an hour." Matt looked pulled out a pocket watch from inside his coat and looked at it, to his surprise it was later than he expected; 5:30. He could've sworn it was 4pm when he ran into Allen and Lavi.

"I just wanted to make sure" said Matt as he put away the pocket watch. "I had searched the town but there was no sign of innocence so I waited for a bit to see if any members of the Black Order came through the area looking for it."

"And" asked Sheril.

"There was 2 exorcists passing through, but they didn't carry any innocence other than their weapons from what I could tell."

"Why didn't you kill them and destroy their innocence?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I didn't feel it to be necessary. Plus I didn't want to ruin the suit" said Matt and Sheril sighed and shook his head.

"Oh well" Sheril smiled. "These things happen now we need to get Lily here ready for the party." Both Matt and Sheril looked at Lily as a maid entered the room.

"Do I have to" asked Lily, her shyness setting in.

"Unfortunately yes" said Matt. "But don't worry, just stay by me or someone else from the family if you get scared ok?" Lily nodded and the maid took Lily to get her changed. Matt looked back at Sheril. "Where's everyone else?"

"Getting ready" said Sheril as he took his seat again. "Making sure they look their best. This isn't one of the Earl's parties Matt, this is one that I host to keep appearances up, so please be on your best behavior."

"I'm surprised you doubt me" said Matt. "When have I ever disappointed you?"

"Never" admitted Sheril. Matt took a seat across from Sheril as they waited for Tyki and Road to meet up with them before they all joined the party that would be starting soon. After a few minutes of silence Tyki and Road entered the room.

"Ah Road you look adorable as ever" said Sheril as he saw Road walk in. Road giggled

"Thanks daddy" said Road. Just then Matt realized that Lily was running towards him. She was wearing a medium length light blue dress and her spiky hair was pushed down and was partially held down by light red headband. Lily ran up to Matt and crawled her way up to Matt's lap and sat down.

"Do you like it" asked Lily as she looked at Matt who smiled.

"Of course" said Matt. "You look wonderful." Lily loved the fact that Matt complemented her and gave him a hug which Matt responded by patting her on the head. After a few minutes of talking Sheril stood up.

"Well, I believe the guests should be arriving now, I do believe we should make our way to the ballroom." Matt nodded and stood up as he kept Lily in his arms. Then the Noah's left to begin the party.

* * *

><p>The party went off without any problems. Despite being very shy, Lily quickly found herself at the center of attention. She was under the alias of being an orphan, just like Matt, however it was Matt who had found her and convinced Sheril to adopt her. Lily didn't like all the attention and therefore found herself hiding behind any of the Noah's there, except Sheril which constantly bothered him; Matt began to get the feeling that she was doing this on purpose now. There was only 1 thing that happened that none of them expected. The Earl had decided to attend the party. This really wasn't much of a problem, though they wished he would've let them know that he was coming.<p>

As the party drew to a close the Earl approached Matt who was sitting in the lounge that was next to the ballroom. Matt had Lily with him of course.

"Well Matt" said the Earl as he took a seat across from Matt. Lily was laying on Matt's lap sleeping soundly, the night had been a very long one for her. "I see you've been reunited with your little experiment" the Earl grinned.

"Yes, it was quite the surprise to me" said Matt.

"So, how has she performed" asked the Earl who was interested in what Matt was going to say.

"She has met expectations fairly well. It has been just about a year now and already Lily has the strength equivalent to a level 3, maybe even a level 4 akuma."

"That is wonderful news" the Earl said delighted. "I can't help but notice she is very close to you. Did you program her to be like that?"

"No, at least I don't think I did. The akuma frame was programed to obey me however I never specified her personality, the way she acts now is of her own free will." The Earl listened with great interest. "There is however one flaw with her" said Matt as he brushed Lily's hair with his hand.

"Oh? What's that?"

"Her strength becomes very unstable when using her maximum power, and there appears to be a good chance that if she uses too much of her power she reverts to her original size and collapses from exhaustion of some sorts."

"That is very interesting. I'm sure I could get the skulls to make an adjustment in the design."

"Probably but I've only seen her in combat once and she may have been trying to impress me so she over did it. It's still too early to say if that was in fact a real flaw or just coincidence."

"Very well, I can give you more time to work out that information. Please let me know when you have gathered the necessary information."

"I will."

"Very good now there is something else I need to discuss with you" said the Earl. Matt looked at him, confused.

"There's more to talk about?"

"Yes, I have a new mission for you." Matt looked at him in surprise. "I have my skulls working on deciphering what we recovered at the old headquarters. What we have so far discovered is that apparently, the original cube that they had had information regarding the second cube that they now have in their possession."

"Ok, I'm not seeing what you need me to do here" said Matt.

"I'm getting to that. We have discovered that they have a complete transcription of everything the cube says however, they split it up between the different Black Order branches. I want you to go to the American Branch and search for that information."

"That won't be an easy task" said Matt.

"I realize. That is why I am giving you as many akuma as you see fit as well as choosing who you want to accompany you to the branch."

"I understand. I'll be ready to head out tomorrow."

"No, not yet" said the Earl which caught Matt of guard.

"Why is that?"

"I need to prepare attacks on the other branches, and that will take a little time to amass enough akuma to launch such a large operation."

"I see. So when will this mission take place?"

"Soon, I'll contact you when everything is ready, but you must let me know who you want accompanying you."

"That's easy, Road, Tyki, and Sheril. I will also be bringing Lily with me."

"Very good" said the Earl as he stood up. "I have complete confidence that your mission will be a success. I will contact you when everything is ready." Matt nodded and the Earl left the room. Matt sat there for a minute more, as he continued to brush Lily's hair. Then he stood up and carried Lily out of the room where he saw Sheril waiting for him.

"Did everything go well" asked Sheril.

"Yeah, everything's fine" Matt said quietly, showing that Lily was asleep. "We have a big mission coming up that we will probably need to prepare for. Can you let Road and Tyki know? I have to put Lily here to bed."

"Sure thing Matt" Sheril said with a smile and Matt walked off.

Matt entered his room and laid Lily down on his bed and put the blankets over her. Matt then changed out of his tuxedo and put on more comfortable clothes then sat on the ground and begun to meditate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 52 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. The calm times will be ending soon though :D, I suppose you could say that they are now in the calm before the storm. Anyways I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please let me know what you thought of it. Until next time!**


	52. The Coming Storm

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

A week passed since the Earl had given Matt the information about his next mission and during that time he began intense preparation. Because he was in charge of the attack he did not want to make another mistake like the one he made at the Acropolis. He feared that the branch may have moved since their last invasion left the branch in ruins; however it was revealed to him that they were in fact rebuilding it and that it was still being used as the North American Branch. This disturbed Matt greatly as none of them knew what to expect now, and they did not know where to look.

Matt was borrowing Sheril's study room to look over all the information he could get on the old branch. But he wasn't getting much. As he read through the documents Sheril walked into the room.

"How goes the research" asked Sheril.

"Terrible" said Matt as he let out a sigh and leaned back into his chair. "We barely have anything on the old branch and now that they've rebuilt it I can't say for certain how accurate these documents can be."

"You're overworking yourself" said Sheril as he took a seat across from the desk Matt sat behind. "I doubt that we will need that much planning after all we have access to plenty of akuma for this mission."

"I won't make the same mistake as the one made at the Acropolis Sheril. I won't risk losing any of you." Sheril was caught off guard. This was the first time in a long time that Matt had called him by his name inside the house.

"Matt, are you still burdened by what happened? I thought Road helped you get over that."

"She did, but there is still no denying that I should've sent someone with him. It was my mistake and Wisely died because of it" said Matt in a calm voice, but Sheril could tell there was still some hurt behind his voice.

"Matt, Wisely was a Noah and he will reincarnate in time. There is no reason for you to burden yourself with that." Matt laughed.

"You know, every once in a while you show me that you actually make a good father" laughed Matt.

"Hey what's that supposed to mean" asked Sheril who was surprised by Matt's sudden change in attitude.

"Exactly what it was meant to mean" Matt said with a smile. "But thank you, I needed that. Sometimes I forget to remind myself that he will return."

"It's no problem" said Sheril as he stood up. "Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to find Lily."

"Be careful, Road may not like it if you turn all your attention to Lily" grinned Matt.

"I give my darling Road plenty of attention" Sheril answered back, sounding offended by the statement.

"Ok" said Matt as he rolled his eyes. "Oh by the way, I doubt Lily will go anywhere near you so you might want to tell her that I said it was ok, otherwise she'll probably run away."

"Thanks" smiled Sheril as he left the room. As the door shut Matt looked at the clock.

"Five minutes" Matt said to himself as he went back to work. As he read the documents he periodically wrote things down on a separate piece of paper. Matt looked back up after a few minutes and looked at the clock and saw that it had almost been 5 minutes. "Three…two…one" Matt said and as soon as he said 'one' the door burst open and Lily came running through the door screaming. Matt smiled as he pushed the chair back as Lily immediately climbed onto his lap. He looked up to see Sheril at the door. "Sheril, what's wrong" asked Matt, trying to hide back a smile and still sound confused.

"I told her you said it was ok, but she wouldn't let me near her and I ended up chasing her through the mansion." Matt shook his head.

"See, this is why I said you had your moments, because as soon as you have them you immediately ruin that image by doing something foolish."

"It's not my fault, she's avoiding me on purpose" said Sheril.

"To be honest, I would probably run as well" Matt muttered but Sheril heard him.

"That's not what I meant" insisted Sheril. "What I'm saying is that she is avoiding me on purpose to bother me." Matt looked at him in surprise then looked at Lily. When he looked at her he saw a grin as she looked at Sheril. It was for only a fraction of a second but he saw it.

"Lily, are you trying to torture father" asked Matt in a stern voice, though he was just playing around.

"No…"said Lily as she looked at Matt with innocent eyes.

"Lily" said Matt who gave her a stern look. After a moment Lily caved.

"Yes….I'm sorry daddy" said Lily, referring to Matt.

"See! What did I tell you" said Sheril. Matt looked at Lily with a stern look and Lily felt guilty.

"Lily" said Matt in a stern voice, but after a brief pause Matt gave her a big smile. "I'm so proud of you" said Matt as he hugged Lily. Sheril's jaw dropped as Lily giggled a little then stuck her tongue out at him.

"Matt, how could you" said Sheril, he sounded as if Matt had just betrayed him. Matt laughed a little bit then looked at Lily again.

"Lily while I am proud that you can torture father, I would like you to stop, ok?"

"But why? It's a lot of fun" Lily said with a smile.

"Because, despite the fact that he's a bit creepy"

"Hey!" Sheril interrupted.

"Despite that, he actually is a fairly decent guy so don't give him such a hard time" Matt said as he shot a grin at Sheril.

"Gee, thanks for the ringing endorsement" Sheril said with sarcasm.

"Anytime father" said Matt giving him an innocent smile. He then let Lily down and she ran over to Sheril. She waved good-bye to Matt and the two left the room.

"I think she's spending too much time with Road" Matt said to himself as he went back to work.

The day came and went and Matt had pretty much worked nonstop for the entire day. He would get periodic visits from everyone, including Tricia, whom he told that he was doing some work for Sheril to avoid her finding out that he was a Noah. Matt only left the room to shower and change clothes after working throughout the night as well. As he left his room he saw Tyki walking down the hall.

"Good morning Tyki" said Matt as he closed his door.

"Good morning" Tyki said with a smile. "I was just on my way to see you."

"Let me guess, it's time to begin the mission" said Matt who was anticipating what Tyki would say.

"Yes, I'm sure you heard the phone ring. Sheril and I are going to head back to the ark and collect the necessary akuma for the mission. Did you ever tell one of us how many you wanted for this?" Matt shook his head and handed Tyki a piece of paper. He read it and looked up.

"Are you sure that this is how many you want" asked Tyki.

"I'm sure; I looked over your last attack and decided that what I wrote there will be enough. By the way, where's Road and Lily?"

"Road has gone on ahead, she is keeping her distance so there is no need for you to run after her. As for Lily, she is with Sheril and wanted to accompany us to the ark seeing as she has never been there before."

"I see, I'll go and join up with Road, I'm sure you will be able to find us."

"She told me where she was" said Tyki.

"Good. Also, when you bring Lily with you be careful. I'm not sure how the other akuma will handle being around her as she is different from them."

"We will make sure nothing happens" Tyki assured Matt and he walked off. Matt reentered his room and opened his closet door. He was wearing casual clothes, some normal pants and a short sleeved buttoned shirt. He thought about wearing his usual black coat but instead opted for a long black trench coat that went down to his ankles. As he finished putting the coat on Road's door opened in his room. He grinned and entered.

* * *

><p>Matt found himself on the edge of a cliff. He could easily see the pyramid shaped building looming in the distance in the middle of the canyon. He saw Road sitting on the edge of the cliff and he walked up to her standing next to her.<p>

"What a pretty sight" said Road without looking up at Matt. "I can't wait to destroy this place again." Matt smiled at what Road said.

"I'm sure you are" said Matt as he looked out at the North American Branch. It looked exactly like the old one that was there and he wondered if the layout inside would be the same. "Remember Road, we can't completely destroy it until we find what we've came here for."

"I know, I know" said Road. Then she looked up at Matt. "Hey Matt, when you were deciding who would go on this mission why didn't you ask the Earl to send her here" asked Road, referring to another Noah. Matt looked down at her.

"I saw no reason, I'm sure the Earl has her running some mission anyways. Besides adding a fifth Noah to this mission would be overkill, there's just no need for her to be here."

"I see, I'm actually a bit surprised. You've been saying you've wanted to see her again for a while now."

"I know, but the time will come. Right now we have more important things to worry about."

"That's true. I wonder how the other attacks will turn out."

"I'm not worried, I'm sure they will turn out fine" said Matt. As Matt said this, a massive ark gate opened behind them. Tyki, and Sheil walked out as Lily ran out to Matt. After they walked through the gate a massive army of akuma came pouring through the gate. Matt grinned. "I think it's time we get this party started."

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 53 coming soon!**

**This chapter was an absolute blast to write. So I hope you enjoyed it! This chapter marks the beginning of the next arc "The Assault on the North American Branch" arc (I know not very original). The arc will last roughly 3 chapters, including this one so I hope you are excited for the battle to come! Anyways that's all for today. Until next time!**


	53. The Battle at the North American Branch

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

The 4 Noah stared down at the North American Branch, all in their Noah forms, with an army of akuma behind them. The time had come for them to attack.

"So Matt, you've been preparing for this the last week" said Tyki. "What's the plan?"

"Well I didn't expect them to use the same building design but that's alright. Tyki, I want you and Sheril to go in and search the branch leader's office. That seems to be the logical place for them to keep sensitive information. I also want you to take Lily with you; she can watch your back."

"But daddy, I wanted to fight with you" Lily protested.

"Sorry Lily, but I need you to stay with Sheri and Tyki for this. You will help protect them" said Matt as he looked down at Lily.

"So where does that leave you and Road" asked Sheril.

"Road and I will lead the akuma into battle and be your distraction" Road, who was still sitting down, looked up at Matt in surprise.

"Distraction, seriously" asked Road.

"Yes Road, we are going to be distractions. We are going to draw out as many of them as we can with this akuma army and we will take out the survivors. This way Tyki, Sheril and Lily will have fewer enemies to worry about."

"I'm surprised you want to be a distraction after what Lulubell did to you" teased Road but Matt ignored it.

"Our big problems here are those pillars surrounding the Branch. We will need to destroy them before you guys can enter."

"We can take care of that" said Tyki but Matt shook his head.

"No, I want them to think there are only 2 Noah here. They won't expect you two if we are the ones who destroy them."

"Very well we'll hold back while you take care of it" said Tyki. At the same time Road stood up.

"Wait until we destroy the first pillar before moving out" Matt reminded them.

"It's time" Road asked Matt who simply nodded and Road summoned her door and the two walked through it. The two exited at the bottom of the cliff.

"How are we going to bring down those pillars" asked Road.

"If I get to them I can destroy them" said Matt.

"Can't you destroy them from a distance?"

"Already tried, those pillars have something in them that is messing with my ability to destroy them from afar. If I can simply touch them I will be able to destroy them easily."

"Reminds me of your first mission" Road grinned.

"Something like that" said Matt as the two walked closer to the Branch. As they approached the closest pillar began to activate.

"It seems they know we're here" said Road; Matt smiled.

"Perfect. Let us begin then." As Matt said this all of the akuma began pouring down into the canyon. Road and Matt kept their distance initially as they watched the akuma's poured past them. By this point they could easily hear an alarm going off as all 4 pillars surrounding the Branch activated and began attacking the akuma. At the same time they could see finders pouring out one of the main entrance of the Branch. To Matt's surprise, the finders were carrying weapons and were able to damage the akumas and after they sustained enough damaged were destroyed.

"Well this is certainly interesting" said Matt, Road looked towards the finders who were attacking the akuma. "It looks like the Black Order has developed a new toy for the finders to use that can battle against the akuma."

"I doubt it's something for us to worry about" said Road.

"You're right. After all, they aren't exorcists so destroying the akuma will prove to be a difficult task. Now we shouldn't waste any time. We need to get that first pillar down so everyone can start moving in." Road nodded and the two ran towards the first pillar.

After a minute of running the two finally reached the first pillar. Matt placed his right hand on the pillar and closed his eyes to concentrate, while Road watched his back. After a few moments the pillar began to crack and eventually collapse. Matt reopened his eyes and turned around. He was surprised to see that the pillars were doing so much damage to his army; he should have brought more level 3 and 4 akuma instead of mostly level 2 and 1 akuma; but there weren't enough of those levels to go around so he took what he could. He was even more surprised by how well the finders were doing. Despite being outnumbered, the finders were holding their own.

* * *

><p>On top of the cliff Tyki saw the first pillar go down.<p>

"The first pillar is down" said Tyki as he turned to Sheril and Lily. "It's time to get moving."

"That's quite the battle going on down there. I hope they will be alright" said Sheril.

"They will" said Lily as she looked up at him. "Daddy is strong so he won't die." Sheril laughed and placed his hand on her head.

"You're right Lily, he is strong. And with Road there with him I doubt anything bad will happen to them."

"Come on we need to get moving" Tyki said impatiently, at that moment they saw a second pillar collapse. "They seem to be working fast."

"Then what are we waiting for" said Sheril and the three ran off.

* * *

><p>Matt watched as the second pillar fell to the ground. At this point they were being attacked by finders who had made their way to them. Matt watched as Road hit several finders with her candles.<p>

"What's going on here" asked Road as she turned to Matt. "They have so many people fighting; I didn't think the Black Order had these kinds of numbers."

"Do not forget that we are fighting finders and not exorcists" said Matt. "Of course there would be more of them. However I find it suspicious that they still have so many fighting."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that I think the exorcists have gotten involved in the fight. We need to hurry up and finish off the pillars so we can take care of them." As he said that the pillar closest to them collapsed as several akuma surrounded it. But as the pillar collapsed a flame-like snake rose into the air and destroyed them. "See what I mean" said Matt. Road and Matt rushed over to where that pillar stood to see Lavi and Lenalee fighting the akuma there. However they hadn't noticed them yet.

"Great these 2" Road sounded upset when she said this.

"It doesn't look like we will be able to get past them easily." As he said this 2 level 4 akuma began attacking them. "Well that's convenient, Road we need to move. As soon as we take care of that last pillar we can go help the others. Road nodded and they rushed off to the last pillar.

In order to avoid the exorcists, Matt and Road ran straight into the center of the battle taking place. As they ran through Matt and Road cut down dozens of finders that stood in their way. Road used her candles while Matt turned his right arm into a sword. The two left a trail of bodies as they reached the final pillar. However instead of slowing down to place his hand on it Matt picked up his speed. As he reached the pillar he pulled his right arm back and punched the pillar. After destroying 2 of the other pillars, Matt knew how to manipulate the pillar faster, so when he hit it the pillar instantly fell onto its side killing several finders and akuma in the process.

"There, the pillars are down" said Matt as he clapped his hands together. Road shook her head.

"Was that really necessary" asked Road.

"Yes, yes it was" said Matt with a grin on his face as he walked past her towards the Branch entrance. "Now let's get in there and help them out." Road nodded and smiled as the two ran towards the entrance.

* * *

><p>Tyki, Sheril, and Lily found their way into the Branch without causing detection, and anyone who found them found themselves dead before their next breath. After searching the complex, the three finally found the Branch leader's office. As they entered they found the Branch Chief Renny Epstain trying to leave.<p>

"Hold it right there" said Sheril as he used his ability to control her body. "You're not going anywhere. Tyki looked at Lily.

"Lily, watch the hallway, make sure nobody gets near." Lily nodded as she left the room. Tyki turned his attention back to the immobile Branch Chief. "Now then, we have a few questions to ask you" said Tyki with a sadistic smile on his face as the door shut behind them.

Lily stood outside watching the hallway, wishing she could help Matt out. However, she didn't have much time to think as two exorcists were heading her way. Lily ran up to them, looking scared. The two exorcists stopped and stared at the girl, confused.

"Hey, what's with the kid" said one of the exorcists.

"No idea, maybe she's an accommodator that hasn't been sent to Headquarters yet" said the other who kneeled down to be at eye level with the scared looking girl. "Hey now, everything's going to be alright" said the exorcist. "We're here to help."

"I'm scared" said Lily as she continued to look scared.

"It's alright everything will be fine, we'll protect you" said the exorcist as he went to pick the girl up. As soon as he was about to touch her Lily gave him a large grin and turned into her dragon form that was small enough to fit nicely in the hallway. As she did she managed to bite the head off of the unsuspecting exorcist. The other exorcist fell to the ground in shock at what he saw. Lily turned her attention to the frightened exorcist. Lily's mouth was covered in blood as she opened her mouth again and lunged at the exorcist's throat.

Inside the Branch Chief's office, Tyki was looking through several documents that the branch chief had 'given' to them. As he read through them he looked at Sheril who was also reading something. Renny was lying on the floor unconscious.

"This is what we came for" said Tyki as he held up the documents. As he looked at Sheril he saw that something caught Sheril's eye. "What is it?"

"It looks like they have a new weapon" said Sheril. Suddenly the ground shook as they heard an explosion in the distance at the same time.

"That can't be good" said Tyki as the 2 ran out of the room.

* * *

><p>It took a few minutes of fierce fighting before they could actually reach the large entrance. In their wake were even more finders and a few exorcists who thought they could handle Road and Matt on their own. The two walked into the entrance when something struck Matt as odd as they walked in. Then he heard something, a beeping noise. He turned around and saw Lavi standing behind them a device that had a button on it, in his hand.<p>

"Got ya" said Lavi with a grin. Matt's eyes widened as he looked around to see several blinking red lights. He grabbed Road and threw her into the building right as Lavi pushed the button. Matt began to encase himself in stone as the entire entrance exploded and the ground and entrance completely collapsed into the ground.

**Thank you for reading! Please review. Chapter 54 coming soon!**

**Well this is the first battle I've had in a while, so I decided to make it a big one, well in terms of scale at least. Part 2 of the battle will of course be the next chapter so look forward to it! Let me know what you thought of it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	54. The Screams of Madness

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Lenalee walked up to Lavi who was staring at the rubble that was one of the entrances to the North American Branch.

"So did you get them" asked Lenalee.

"I got 1" said Lavi who looked a little disappointed about not getting both.

"Which Noah were they? You seemed to know but you never bothered to tell me."

"Road and Matt" said Lavi and Lenalee looked a bit surprised to hear those names. "Matt ended up throwing Road into to the building before the explosives went off. Matt on the other hand was not so lucky." Lenalee looked upset. She was still holding on to the fleeting hope that she could convince Matt to become a friend and have him join the Black Order. Lavi noticed Lenalee's look. "Lenalee, why are you upset, we just beat a Noah who has been giving us so much trouble for years. Why on earth are you upset?"

"I don't know" said Lenalee. "I guess I was hoping that in the end he would join us."

"Lenalee, didn't you say that the last time you two actually spoke Matt said that he would never join us?"

"He did" said Lenalee who looked a little ashamed for even feeling upset. Lavi sighed.

"Lenalee you're too kind sometimes, even to your enemies. But it doesn't matter because he's been defeated. There's no way he could survive explosions at that close range." Lavi then looked out at the battle. There were still a few exorcists and finders fighting out there and the number of akuma was dwindling. "It looks like we've won this one" said Lavi as he sat down on a piece of rubble.

"What about Road" asked Lenalee.

"My guess is that she's fled the area. She knows she is outnumbered here. I doubt she will stick around."

* * *

><p>Matt was lying in the pile of rubble that was in a dark underground cave not far from the surface. Matt's clothes were torn and scorched in places while blood stains from shrapnel wounds covered other parts. His face and right arm were also covered in burns. Matt breath slowly as he opened his eyes. He couldn't see very much other than a very small stream of light that came from the surface. He slowly leaned up trying to get his head together; everything was a blur. However, he remembered throwing Road to safety as the explosives went off.<p>

"Road, I hope you're alright" Matt said to himself. As he tried to stand up the rubble he was sitting on gave way and Matt found himself rolling down the mound of rubble. Eventually, Matt landed on his back in a shallow pool of water. Matt slowly stood up, he body was aching in pain and he could feel pieces of stone and metal that was in his skin being forced out by his regenerative abilities.

"Thank goodness that wasn't innocence otherwise I would have been in trouble" Matt mumbled as he tried to look around. There wasn't any real way out that he could tell and he wasn't about to go wandering in the darkness to find a way out. He looked back up and stared at the single area where light was coming in. It was almost 20ft (6m) above him. He tried to use his earth manipulation but for some reason it wasn't working.

"Majnun what's going on here" said Matt hoping that Majnun was paying attention.

"How on earth would I know" Majnun's voice echoed through the room. He couldn't see him, but he could feel his shadowy presence.

"Well I don't know, you are my Noah memories, I would assume that you would have at least some knowledge" Matt said sarcastically.

"Well maybe you should think as well. If you can't use your earth manipulation then that means one of two possibilities. Either you are in too much water or everything around you isn't natural material" said Majnun, a little annoyance could be heard in his voice. "Given the situation I doubt it's the water, seeing as it only goes past you ankles."

"Great, just great" said Matt. "So how am I supposed to get out of here" said Matt who was now officially annoyed. "Damn it all" yelled Matt as he kicked the water but as he did he felt a pain in his leg which forced him to stop. "Majnun, do you have an ability so I can at least see?"

"I do but I will not teach it to you" said Majnun, Matt was surprised by this.

"Look Majnun, I need to get out of here and I'm not going to wander around here in the dark! Just teach me the damn ability!"

"I won't teach you that ability because you are not ready for it" yelled Majnun which caught Matt off guard. "The Madness flames are the purest form of your Madness Aura, it is extremely dangerous and if you don't have absolute control you risk destroying everything around you, friend and enemy alike. It's a more refined form of that parasitic aura that you had to deal with."

"Whatever then is there an ability that can get me out of here?" There was a pause.

"Yes, I have 2 abilities that I can teach you to get out of here and get back into the fight."

"Wait two? Why two, when I only asked for 1?"

"Because I one of those abilities has the power to kill you that's why" Majnun snapped back at Matt. "I'm teaching you two abilities so you never have to use the first again after this moment." Matt stood there silently for a moment, the thought that there were abilities that could kill him greatly disturbed him. However he knew what he had to do.

Matt took a deep breath, "Fine, teach me them."

"Very well" said Majnun. "You might want to sit down; the first ability that I am going to teach you is complicated and will take a few minutes to fully explain." Matt nodded and felt around until he found a flat piece of rubble. He sat down and closed his eyes as Majnun began to teach.

* * *

><p>Inside the building Road was sitting against the wall where Matt had thrown him. It had been a few minutes since the explosion and she had just sat there in shock. Again Matt sacrificed himself in order to protect her. As she sat there she heard several footsteps approaching her. One set was much louder than the rest.<p>

"Road" yelled Sheril as he ran up to his daughter. "Road are you alright?" Road looked up. She saw Sheril standing over her with Tyki and Lily, who was still in her dragon form, standing behind him.

"I'm fine father" said Road quietly. Both Tyki and Sheril realized that something happened. Lily however didn't quite get it. She looked around for a moment then went back into her human form. She walked up to Road and pulled on her sleeve.

"Road, where's daddy" Lily asked, confused. Road looked at her, she didn't know what to say at the moment. Sheril realized this.

"Matt is doing something right now; he'll meet up with us soon. Won't he Road?" Road looked up at Sheril, then back at Lily. Would Matt be back? She shook her head to get the thought out of her head then smiled at Lily.

"That's right. Matt is taking care of something right now. We will see him soon, don't worry." Lily accepted Road's answer. Road then looked up and saw that Tyki was missing, he had gone to look for Matt.

* * *

><p>Tyki found himself in the middle of the cave that Matt was in. He could see just a single beam of light and as he walked across the air, approached the light. He looked around the rubble and managed to see Matt sitting on the ground. Though it was very dark he could tell that he was pretty beaten up. Tyki landed on some rubble which caught Matt's immediate attention.<p>

"Tyki, I assume that's you" said Matt without opening his eyes.

"Yes" said Tyki. "Matt let me help you out of here. Everyone is waiting for you inside the building. We have what we came for, now it's time to leave."

"In due time Tyki. However, I have a bone to pick with an exorcist above me and I won't leave until I deal with it."

"Do you need help getting out? After all, you can't walk through walls and I can assume you can't use your earth manipulation here."

"You're right, I can't but I don't need it right now. Tyki I need you to do me a big favor."

"What's that?"

"Take everyone and get out of here. Get back to where we first arrived. Be quick as I will only wait a minute for you. If you don't get there cover your ears immediately." Tyki was confused but nodded. "Don't worry Tyki, after I use the ability you will need to come back as I will only be able to move around for a few minutes." Tyki didn't ask why but accepted what Matt said and immediately went back to everyone else. When Matt heard him leave he stood up and began to count.

* * *

><p>Tyki returned to everyone who was awaiting his return.<p>

"Tyki where's Matt" asked Road.

"He's alright but he's instructed us to leave now" Tyki said quickly. Everyone could see that Tyki meant it and they used Tyki's ability to quickly leave the building.

Below ground Matt had finished counting and went immediately into his ultimate form. He moved his Madness Aura across the area.

"Remember Matt, this ability consumes a lot of energy, use it to much and you'll die right here" warned Majnun.

"Don't worry, I have no plans of dying here" said Matt as he began to concentrate and a soft high pitch screech began to emit from the Madness Aura.

* * *

><p>Outside Lavi was sitting in the rubble talking to Lenalee when he noticed Tyki and the other Noah fleeing the area.<br>"Crap, there were more Noah here" yelled Lavi as he prepared to activate his innocence. However before he could do anything Lenalee stopped him. "What is it Lenalee" Lavi sounded impatient.

"Do you hear something" asked Lenalee. Lavi calmed himself down and began to listen. He could definatly hear something.

"Sounds like a high pitch screech" said Lavi. As he said this the constant screech began to grow louder and louder at an alarming rate. Lavi realized something was wrong as the screech became very loud. Lavi covered his ears as the screech continued to grow louder. Eventually everyone including the akuma could hear the screech and began to cover their ears. As it seemed to reach its maximum volume the screech became even louder and began to resonate and echo across the canyon. Now people were screaming as the screech was piercing loud, even the akuma were being tortured by this. After what felt like an age the screech finally reached maximum volume and as soona s it did the ground and even the Branch began to crack. The ground began to break apart and fall into the cave as the ground opened the noise became oven louder as the previous noise they heard was muffled by the ground. Eventually the Branch itself began to crumble in parts, people were lying on the ground in pain. Only Lavi, Lenalee and the surviving exorcists were still standing but it felt like their head was about to split in half. Finally, the ground completely opened up and a black blur leapt out of the ground and when it landed it was revealed to be Matt. As soon as Matt touched down the screech immediately stopped. Now even Lavi fell to the ground in relief. He looked up and saw Matt walking towards him.

"Crap, I can't move" Lavi said to himself as Matt was now standing over him.

"Now you're going to pay for what you did" said Matt as he raised his hand to the side and a ball of Madness Aura formed in his hand. Matt went to swing his arm as he felt his left leg give out and fell to its knee. Because of this Matt swung his arm to the side of Lavi. As he swung the aura formed a large arc and left Matt's hand and cut through the Branch with relative ease. Matt was on all fours. He was breathing heavily; he used up far too much energy in his last ability and now could barely keep himself up. He felt his arms give way as he felt someone grab the back of his coat.

"Geez Matt, you should have warned me a little better, we would have ran much further away if I had known that ability of yours would be so damn loud" said Tyki as he held Matt by the back of his coat. He then dragged Matt through Road's door where he came from to bring him back to his family. Lavi just watched and as soon as the door disappeared his head collapsed to the ground in relief. He realized that he just walked away form a death sentence.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 55 coming soon!**

**Well that puts an end to the battle; I will be wrapping up this arc next chapter and will be starting up a new arc immediately after. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	55. Exhaustion

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Everyone returned to the mansion after Tyki grabbed Matt after he had collapsed. Sheril was helping Tyki drag Matt back to his room so he could rest. Road, who was following them looked at Matt. The burns and worn clothes and various injuries were to be expected of Matt after what had happened; and knowing that he was still alive reassured her that he was going to heal. What caught her eye was the absolute exhausted look Matt had. He was sweating and breathing heavily and his face. He was barely conscious as they dragged him into his room but Matt couldn't even move his eyes, let alone anything else; it was as if every last drop of strength had left his body. Tyki took of Matt's coat and threw it on the armchair in Matt's room and then lifted Matt into his bed.

"Rest now Matt" said Sheril as he placed the bed covers over Matt. "Right now the best thing you can do is rest." Matt didn't respond and Sheril knew that Matt wasn't going to; it was more to reassure Road, who still looked a bit worried, that Matt just needed some rest to regain his strength.

"Alright, let's give him some space" said Tyki as he somewhat forced everyone out of the room. The only one who refused to move was Lily who was still standing by Matt's bed as she tried to climb on top of it. However, because of her short height and somewhat frail human body she couldn't really pull herself onto the tall bed. "Lily, are you coming?" Lily turned her head towards Tyki and shook her head.

"I wanna stay here" said Lily. Tyki realized that there was no way she would leave willingly and to be honest, he didn't really want to try. Tyki sighed and walked over and lifted her onto the bed. Lily then transformed into her small dragon form and curled up at the front of the bed. Tyki then left the room and closed the door behind him.

Matt awoke 2 days later. He leaned up out of bed; his body was a bit sore and he still felt exhausted, but at least he could move again.

"Damn, probably shouldn't use that one again" Matt said to himself.

"Told you so" said Majnun.

"Shut up." Matt looked over and saw that Lily was sleeping, curled up in her dragon form. Matt quietly got off of his bed and opened his closet and changed his clothes. He looked at the clock in his room to see that it was just after noon. He decided to wear some regular clothes that were easy to put on, seeing as he still felt like he couldn't move all that well. As he closed the door to the closet, he accidently closed it to loud and Lily woke up. She blinked a few times as she stared at Matt then changed into her human form. She seemed extremely happy to see him awake.

"Hello Lily" Matt said with a smile. "Sorry to wake you up, I was just finishing getting changed."

"It's ok" said Lily.

"Lily, how long have you been here" asked Matt.

Lily thought about it for a moment, "About 2 days."

"That long" Matt said to himself, "Well that means I still have a ways to go before I've fully recovered."

"What do you mean daddy?"

"Oh nothing" said Matt realizing that he spoke to loud. "Hey Lily I'm going to go for a walk, you can go back to sleep if you like." Lily shook her head.

"No I want to go with you."

"Ok then let's go" said Matt as he walked to the door. As he opened it he realized that Lily wasn't following him. He turned around and saw Lily looking at the ground from the edge of the bed. She looked up at Matt with scared eyes. Matt sighed and walked up to her.

"Unbelievable, a dragon that's afraid of heights" Matt laughed a little as he helped Lily down. He found it very difficult to hold her as he placed her on the ground. The two then left the room. As they walked they ran into a butler.

"Ah, young Master, it is good to see you have awakened. I heard you had quite the trip" said the butler.

"Indeed, I'm still a bit tired" said Matt. "Do you know where my father is?"

"I do believe I saw him in the ballroom not a few moments ago."

"Thank you very much" said Matt as he continued to walk.

* * *

><p>Matt went downstairs then followed one of the hallways until he reached the large ballroom. As he entered he saw Sheril talking with Tyki at the far end of the room. As Matt entered, his footsteps echoed which caught their attention.<p>

"Matt, it is good to see you awake" Tyki said with a warm smile. Matt smiled back as he began to walk up to them.

"Yeah, though I'm not going to lie, I still don't have a lot of energy" said Matt as he walked to the side of the room where they were. He stood a few paces away from them, though he didn't know why.

"Well that's obvious" said Sheril, "after all you are slouching." Matt was surprised, he hadn't realized that he was slouched over.

"Like I said, not a lot of energy, and I didn't even realize" said Matt as he scratched the back of his head.  
>Road was on the second floor of the ballroom above Matt. She heard him talking and leaned over to see him. She didn't say anything as she realized where Matt was standing. An evil smile came over her face as she leapt over the railing and landed feet first onto Matt's slouched back. Matt was sent face first into the ground, much to the surprise of everyone there. Everyone, except Matt who was now lying face first on the ground had wide eyes and lightly drooped jaws as Road jumped up and sat on his back as Matt was on the ground.<p>

"What the hell Road" yelled Matt as he lifted his head and tried to look back at her. "What was that for?" Road giggled a little.

"Isn't it obvious? I wanted you to catch me" said Road with an innocent smile on her face.

"Well that might have worked better if you had actually warned me" yelled Matt, he tried to get up but with his limited amount of energy Road was able to keep him pinned just by sitting on his back.

"Well I thought that you would notice me before I landed" lied Road.

"Don't give me that crap, you knew I wasn't paying attention" said Matt as he turned his head to Sheril and Tyki. "Well are you just going to stand there or will one of you get her off me?" Tyki laughed.

"Nope, I've said it before, I'm not getting involved with your little quarrels" said Tyki.

"What Road did was a simple miscommunication Matt, you should have been paying better attention" said Sheril.

"Don't side with her" Matt yelled in disbelief, Road simply laughed. "I take back what I said a while ago, you're a terrible father."

"Oh come now Matt. There's no need for that. Road was just happy to see you. And besides why can't you lift her up" said Sheril.

"I can't" Matt muttered, a little embarrassed.

"What was that" asked Tyki.

"I said I can't. I can't pick her up!"

"Are you calling me heavy" said Road, pretending to be upset as she kicked Matt on the top of his head with the back of her foot.

"No, nothing like that, I'm saying I don't have the strength right now to lift much."

"So you are saying I'm heavy" Road teased, though she still sounded upset.

"Look I could barely carry Lily, and we all know she the lightest one here. What makes you think I would be able to lift anything else?"

"I know you were pretty worn out when we brought you home but seriously Matt, how can you still be that tired" asked Tyki.

"Majnun explained to me that my new ability uses up a lot of energy when being used. If I'm not careful I can be out for quite some time. I expect that within the week I will be back to full strength."

"Speaking of that new ability of yours, why the hell was it so loud" asked Road. "Seriously, I almost went deaf."

"That ability has 2 purposes. In its stage, the screech you heard has the ability to paralyze almost any opponent. In the second stage, the screech gains destructive abilities as it begins to resonate to the point that it can destroy objects. Also anyone who wasn't paralyzed in the first stage would become paralyzed in the second. Nobody except me is really safe from this ability."

"Really? Why are you immune" asked Sheril.

"My ears sort of shut down during that time, if they didn't I would paralyze myself" said Matt. "I don't really know what happens exactly, all I know is that when I used the ability I couldn't hear a thing until I stopped the ability."

"Well it's too loud" complained Road. "Don't do it again." Matt laughed a little; though it was a bit difficult seeing as Road was sitting on him.

"Don't worry, I doubt I will use that a lot, the price isn't exactly worth it. Now can you do me a favor and get the hell of me?"

"No" Road said playfully.

"Come on Road, let Matt get up" said Tyki which caused Road to pout.

"But I don't wanna" complained Road. "I don't have to get up do I father" Road asked Sheril with puppy dog eyes; eyes that she knew Sheril couldn't refuse.

"I suppose you don't" said Sheril.

"You have got to be kidding me" Matt said in disbelief as he laid his head on its side. "Lily do something!" Lily walked over to Sheril and tugged on his shirt. Sheril looked down at Lily who was staring at him with beady eyes. Lily pouted her lip and he could have sworn that tears were building up.

"Please get Road off daddy. Please?" Sheril tried to resist, he didn't want to go back on what he just said to Road, but there was no way he could resist that face.

"Fine" Sheril said, a bit defeated. "Road, please get off Matt." Road's jaw dropped in disbelief. However she was getting somewhat bored of sitting on Matt so she stood up, but not before stepping down on his back with a little force one last time before walking in front of him. Matt got to his knees as he saw a hand enter his vision. He looked up and saw Road holding out her hand offering to help him up.

"It's good to see you alright" said Road with a smile. Matt didn't really trust Road at the moment seeing as this usually meant that she will push him back down. But he took up her offer and grabbed her hand as she helped pull Matt up.

"Thanks" Matt said with a smile as he walked past her. As he did though he hit Road on the back of her head with the back of his hand. Tyki couldn't help but laugh a little. "That's for earlier" said Matt as Road rubbed the back of her head.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 56 coming soon!**

**With this chapter finished, the current arc is finished. However, I will be answering some questions that this arc had created in the next chapter, or at least questions that I thought were created at the very least. The next arc will also begin in the next chapter as well. Anyways, let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	56. A Simple Game of Chess

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

It has been 4 days since everyone returned from the North American Branch; for Matt he was only awake for 2 of them. Matt's energy was finally improving to the point where he at least acted like his normal self. However, Matt said that he has only regained about 60% of his energy, even though he's been resting for most of the time. During that time everyone would visit him in his room every day. Including Tricia, who was told that Matt was sick. However, Matt had to discuss the last mission, he never got around to talking about it the previous day and he needed to know exactly how it went. He found Sheril in his study.

"Matt, I thought you were resting" said Sheril.

"I was but I needed to talk to someone about the mission. I couldn't find Tyki and Road was with me" said Matt as he took a seat across from Sheril.

"I see" said Sheril as he gave Matt his undivided attention. "What is it you need to know?"

"Fairly basic question, how did it go?"

"We recovered the documents that we were sent to retrieve. There were no problems with your plan, we had just finished when we heard the explosions."

"I see and have the documents been delivered to the Earl?"

"Yes, the following day Tyki and I delivered them."

"That's a relief. I'm glad that everything turned out well" Matt said with a smile. "I was worried that something may have gone wrong."

"Why would you think that" asked Sheril who was confused by Matt's concern.

"I don't know, I think the Acropolis got into my head and I feared that something may have gone wrong."

"I see" said Sheril. "Well you had nothing to worry about. Everything went well, and we discovered something else." Matt looked at Sheril, he was interested in what Sheril had to say.

"What did you discover?"

"Apparently, the Black Order had been using the North American Branch to develop a new weapon."

"What kind of weapon" asked Matt.

"The documents called it artificial innocence" said Sheril. "Apparently they were able to create fake innocence that anyone can use. It is extremely weak in comparison to regular innocence but according to their theory, finders can use these weapons to better defend themselves against akuma, even Noah. If you ask me I find it a bit ridiculous."

"No it's true" said Matt. Sheril looked at Matt in surprise. "When we attacked the Branch, only a handful of exorcists were there. Most of the people fighting were in fact finders. I had noticed that their weapons were able to destroy level 1 akuma with little effort, and managed to destroy level 2 akuma when they were able to outnumber one. I didn't see any destroy a level 3 or 4 akuma; only the exorcists there destroyed any of those."

"It's hard to imagine that they have created a weapon that can fight our weaker forces" said Sheril as he adjusted his monocle. "But I doubt that those weapons will have any effect on us."

"That may not be the case" said Matt. "I don't think that this artificial innocence will be able to kill us but I do believe that it can hurt us."

"Why do you say that?"

"Just a hunch" said Matt as he stood up. "Thank you for letting me know father. I take it the Earl is aware of this as well?"

"He is. He doesn't believe that it is much to worry about."

"Did he happen to mention the success of the other missions?"

"As a matter of fact he did. The attacks on the Oceania Branch and the Middle Eastern Branch were a complete success. The attacks on the African, South American, and Asian Branches have not begun yet."

"What of the Central Branch?"

"Well there was an all akuma attack on the Branch, but it was a total defeat, the Earl said that the akuma weren't able to get anywhere near it."

"Central is going to be difficult to breach, but at least we had some success. Thank you for letting me know" Matt said with a smile. He then began to leave the room.

"Heading back to your room" asked Sheril.

"Yes, I'm still very tired, it's weird, it has been a long time since I've slept this much" Matt laughed a little.

"Well sleep well then" Sheril said with a smile. Matt nodded and left the room.

* * *

><p>The next day, Matt was playing a game of chess with Road. Usually he played with Tyki but he was busy doing who knows what, and Sheril was also busy with his job as the Prime Minister. This left Road who had nothing better to do. Road sat across from him as they played. Both of them looked relatively bored. Matt had won the last three games that they had played and decided to let Road win the last game.<p>

"Checkmate" said Road as she knocked over Matt's king. Matt looked down in surprise. Sure he was going to let her win but she still beat him faster than he thought.

"Good job, at least I know you can beat me at least once" Matt said a bit sarcastically. Road shot him a quick glare then held out her hand, wanting something. "What?"

"Give me some candy" said Road.

"Why would I do that" said Matt.

"Because I won that's why."

"But when I won the previous 3 times I didn't get anything in return" said Matt, Road pouted a little.

"What did you want?" Matt thought about it for a moment, but in the end there wasn't really anything he wanted at the moment.

"Fine, I'll go get some" said Matt as he stood up and walked over to his closet. He kneeled down and opened the safe where he kept bags of candy. He reached in and pulled out a bag. As he stood up he threw the sealed bag at Road who caught it with one hand.

"That's it" asked Road, a tad disappointed. "I thought there would be more."

"Nope, that's all you're getting for now" said Matt as he sat down on his bed. Lily was with Sheril, even though he was working so she wasn't with Matt for the first time since they had returned.

"Can we play another game where if I win I can get more candy" asked Road.

"You really want to play more chess" Matt asked in disbelief.

"No, chess is boring" complained Road. "I meant a different game."

"And what did you have in mind" asked Matt as he rested his head in his hand, he really didn't like Road's games as they usually meant in the end he would be hurt.

"How about a game of chase? If you can catch me you win" Road said with a smile as she picked up one of the chess pieces and began tossing it in the air. Matt sighed.

"I don't want to run around Road."

"Awwww come on Matt please" begged Road.

"No Road, I really don't want to go and chase you around. It's not a game you can win anyways, even though I have less energy than normal, I'm still faster than you."

"You're not faster than me, I always let you win" Road said confidently. Matt grinned, now she was taunting him, he wasn't going to allow this.

"Fine, and if I win, no candy for you for a week." Road gulped, now she saw Matt's grin and she wasn't as confident as before.

"Fine" said Road. "But if I win, you have to give me as much candy as I want."

"Deal" said Matt as he remained seated. "On the count of 3 then?" Road nodded. "One."

"Two" said Road.

"Three" said Matt and he pushed himself of his bed with enough force to push the bed back to the window. In that one stride Matt had reached Road. As he passed her his right arm wrapped around her stomach and Matt tackled her to the ground. Matt went to pin her, which would mean he would win. But as he did Road leaned up and head butted Matt right into his nose, breaking it.

"God damn it" yelled Matt as he leaned back and grabbed his nose which began to bleed. Road got up and tried to get away but Matt grabbed one of her legs with his left arm and pulled her to the ground. He then went and pinned her down. "I win" said Matt. Road pouted, she was upset that she lost so quickly. At the same time however Sheril walked in with Lily.

"Hey Matt, Lily wanted to see you, I hope" Sheril cut himself off. He looked at the mess in the room and saw Matt pinning Road to the ground with his nose bleeding. He immediately got the wrong idea. "Matt, what are you doing" Sheril said angrily.

"What are you talking about" asked Matt.

"Why are you on top of Road, and why is your nose bleeding?"

"I'm, what?" Matt looked down and realized he was still pinning Road to the ground. He immediately released her and fell back. "It was her game, she insisted that I played with her" Matt said frantically hoping to prevent Sheril from getting upset with him.

"Oh yeah? Then why is your nose bleeding?"

"My nose is bleeding because she broke it" yelled Matt. He then went and moved his nose back into place, there was a quick crack and then his nose stopped bleeding, the injury had healed.

"She, did what" asked Sheril, realizing that he may have over reacted. "You mean this was just one of her games?"

"Yes" said Matt as he stood up then went and helped Road up. "Road tell him that it was just a game."

"Father Matt was trying to" Matt cut her off by placing his hand over her mouth.

"So help me Road, if you dare get me in trouble I will never give you candy again. And I will make sure that you never receive any from anyone else" Matt whispered angrily into Road's ear before releasing Road.

"It was just a game father" Road said immediately as Matt's hand uncovered her mouth. Sheril stared suspiciously at Road, but then smiled.

"Ok Road, if you say it was just a game then I'll take your word for it" said Sheril. Matt sighed in relief, he dodged a bullet there.

* * *

><p>Outside the mansion a group of nearly 50 men were walking towards the mansion. They were all heavily armed, some with explosives and others with just normal weapons.<p>

"So this is the Kamelot mansion" said one of the men.

"Yeah this is the place" said the man in front, assumed to be the leader. "Remember, we are to rip this place apart and kill everyone inside. Also, Rouvelier said he'd triple all of our pay for every single grey skinned person we kill." Everyone laughed a little as one of the men who was carrying explosives lit a stick of dynamite and threw it at the mansion.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 57 coming soon!**

**This chapter marks the beginning of a very short, 2 chapter arc (I think). I enjoyed writing this one for many reasons, but mainly because I found it funny to write at times. Anyways let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	57. Destruction

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Sheril, Road, Matt and Lily heard a large explosion come from what appeared to be the front of the mansion.

"What the hell was that" Matt asked as the sound of the explosion died down.

"I'm not sure but I think we need to go check it out" said Sheril and the 4 of them ran out of the room to check on what happened. As they ran they heard yet another explosion and the smell of smoke coming. After a minute of running they reached a balcony that looked over the stairs and the main entrance. The door was blown open and armed men were running into the mansion. Some of the area was now on fire. The sound of screams could be heard in throughout the house as they saw one of the servants get cut down in the main hallway.

"What's going on" Road asked in both shock and confusion.

"This isn't good" said Sheril who was equally confused. "We need to get everyone outside, it will be easier to defend them where there is more room to move. Matt do you think you can start lowering their numbers?"

"Yeah" said Matt as he watched the attackers rush into the house. "Good, Road is going to look for Tyki while I help get people out."

"Take Lily with you, she can help defend the servants once they get outside."

"Alright" said Sheril as Road took off already. Sheril took Lily and ran off in the same direction as Road. As they left on of the attackers looked up and saw Matt standing on top of the balcony, he was in his Noah form and his eyes widened.

"I found one of the grey skinned guys" the man yelled as lit a stick of dynamite and threw it at Matt. Matt leapt off the balcony as he did he grabbed the dynamite midair and threw towards the top of the chandelier. Matt landed on the ground and immediately turned his right arm into a sword. At the same time the dynamite went off and the chandelier came crashing to the ground killing the man who originally threw the dynamite. Matt stood up and looked around him. He was surrounded by a few of the attackers; it struck him odd that some were carrying weapons similar to the ones the finders were using at the North American Branch. He watched as the last of the attackers filtered into the mansion and began setting the entrance area on fire,

"You bastards are going to pay of this" said Matt as he lunged at the man standing in front of him. The man couldn't even react to Matt's attack as his head was cut off almost instantly. In and effortless motion, Matt immediately leapt back and began killing the rest who had surrounded him as they all attacked at once. However none reached him as several stone spikes came out of the ground and stabbed each and every one of them. Matt's head became a little light headed and he immediately shook it off.

"Can't use too much of my power at once, I'm still not ready" said Matt as he ran back up the stairs following after a few people he saw run up. Matt turned a corner and saw one of the attackers run out of one of the rooms. Matt gave chase but as soon as he reached the door the person ran out of the entire room next to him exploded sending Matt through the wall across from the explosion. There was a bit of pain but he ignored it. He stood back up and walked out of the hole he made. As he was stepping out a man came running by him. In one quick motion Matt cut the man in half. A second man was quick to follow but not fast enough to actually react to Matt who grabbed him and threw him into the burning room. Matt coughed a bit as he inhaled some smoke as he continued on.

As he ran he came across more rooms that were completely on fire. It was at this point that Matt realized that the mansion wasn't going to be saved but he knew he had to kill as many of these unknown attackers before they could kill everyone that lived in the mansion.

* * *

><p>Outside Sheril and Lily, who was still in her human from, had managed to bring as many people as they could outside. None of the attackers had made it through the mansion yet so the only people that were in the large back yard were servants and a few guards who had helped escort people outside. As Sheril scanned around he saw Road and Tyki nearby. He ran over to them relieved that they were alright.<p>

"Tyki, Road are you alright" asked Sheril.

"We're fine, I ran into Road as I went looking for you all when I heard the explosion. What's going on here" asked Tyki as he looked back the mansion that now had sections of it on fire.

"Well we are under attack by an unknown enemy but they seem hell bent on killing everyone here. Matt is still inside dealing with as many as he can." Sheril then looked around again and became worried. "Where's Tricia?" Tyki looked around realized that she wasn't here.

"Sheril stay here with Road, I'll go look for her" said Tyki as he ran into the mansion. Road immediately followed after him.

"Road where are you going" yelled Sheril.

"I'm going to find Matt and see if he needs any help" Road yelled back as she then entered the mansion herself.

"Damn it. This isn't going to end well I can tell" said Sheril as he walked over to some of the servants to see if they were alright.

* * *

><p>Matt continued to run down the now burning hallways, he was thankful that the mansion was well built and was still holding together but he knew that it would not last. As he ran he had to step over bodies of servants and guards who were killed by the attackers. Every once in a while he came across a dead attacker but they were rare. If he ran into a live one however he killed them before they could even react. However as he ran he ran into an attacker who actually dodged his attack. Matt was caught off guard by this as the attacker tried to stab him. The attack grazed Matt's shoulder. The wound hurt much more than he expected and wasn't healing as fast. He quickly dealt with the man.<p>

"There's no way this person is an exorcist, yet his weapon hurt almost as much as an anti akuma weapon" Matt said to himself. But he didn't have time to think as he then heard a scream coming from nearby. Matt took off hoping to help the person who was screaming.

Tricia was on the ground at the corner of a hallway, one of the attackers was standing over her with a bloody blade in his hand.

"I'm going to enjoy killing you" said the man as he raised the blade over Tricia. She closed her eyes then heard the sound of the man screaming and a loud crash. She opened her eyes to see the man's head crushed through a wall with one of his arms missing. She looked to see who had helped her and her eyes widened. There standing in front of her was Matt, or at least she thought it was. He looked like him but his skin, eyes, and hair were all different colors than Matt's. Not to mention the cold expression in his eyes. But when she saw Matt's black left arm and she knew. Matt looked down and his eyes widened; he was not expecting the person he was saving was his mother.

"M-Matt, is that you" asked Tricia. Matt looked at her and his expression in his eyes changed from cold to warm and he gave her a weak smile.

"Yeah" said Matt as he knelt down to see if she was alright. He had no idea how he was going to explain this. "Look, mother I don't know exactly what to say here" said Matt, there was a lot of guilt in his eyes. "I promise that once all of this is over I swear I will explain myself." Tricia looked at her adopted son, he had blood all over his clothes, his face and clothes were singed. He looked a mess but he gave her a warm smile nonetheless. At the same time Road and Tyki turned at another corner further down the hallway. They were relieved to see Matt was alright. Matt nodded to them then looked back at Tricia.

"Mother, I need you to go with Tyki and Road. They will keep you safe and get you out of the house."

"But what about you" asked Tricia who was now worried about her son.

"I'll be fine, it will take a lot more than what these guys are throwing at us in order to kill me" Matt said with a warm smile, and then Tyki walked up and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Come on Tricia, time to go" said Tyki. Tricia looked up at Tyki to see he looked the same as Matt, even Road looked the same. She wanted to ask but knew it was not a good time to start asking questions. Tyki took Tricia abd began heading back in the direction he came from. Road looked at Matt whose face became very serious again.

"Road, go with him" said Matt.

"No Matt, I'm going to fight with you" said Road.

"Not an option, this house is about ready to collapse I think and that means that the rest of these attackers must be heading outside now. I've only killed a small handful of them so I'm sure that there are plenty left."

"But" said Road but Matt immediately cut her off.

"I said no" yelled Matt, this caught Road off guard. Matt collected himself and began to speak normally. "I need you to help Sheril and the rest. Lure them back towards the hedge maze and see if you can't take them out quickly. No go!" Road looked at Matt for a moment, then nodded and left. Matt continued down the hallway.

* * *

><p>Matt continued to run down the hallways, things were becoming more and more chaotic with each step. At times he could no longer tell where he was. At one point Matt took a step and the entire floor beneath him gave way into a burning inferno below. Matt was able to however grab the edge of the new hole and pulled himself back up. The way he figured, the mansion was only going to stand for a few more minutes at best. He began to look for a way out; some hallways had the ceiling fall in on him and forced Matt to find a new path. Eventually he found himself on the second floor of the ballroom. The room was trashed but a few of the attackers were still working on the place with dynamite; as it was the only way to deal with the marble pillars. Matt was about to attack them when he noticed someone near the far end of the ballroom on his floor. The man looked different from the rest as he actually looked strong. His face was covered up by a mask and hood. Without hesitation Matt attacked the man who easily side stepped Matt attack and stab him in his shoulder. Matt hit the ground, this pain was worse than the last injury he received, and not because of the severity, the blade as it pierced him felt completely than the previous weapon; this was innocence. Matt managed to move out of the way before more damage could be done to him. He looked up at the man; the coat he was wearing had the symbol of the Black Order on it.<p>

"I should have known this was the Black Order's doing" said Matt as he stood back up. "But I've killed many exorcists before now, and several of your friends here. You don't stand a chance of beating me."

"I'm not an exorcist" said the man. "I'm a member of CROW. I am one of their assassins. And I would hardly call them friends, these are merely mercenaries that were hired, we didn't need to have to worry about exorcists or finders making a moral choice." Matt looked unimpressed.

"So you're one of Rouvelier's dogs? Well even more reason to kill you then" Matt grinned and attacked the assassin again. The two traded attacks, with both of them either blocking or dodging each attack made. As they fought there was another explosion; this time from underneath them. The pillar that was holding up the balcony was destroyed and the entire section of the hallway collapsed to the ground with Matt with it. Matt hit the ground hard and was slow to get up. The assassin gently leapt of the second floor and landed on the main, a group of mercenaries surrounded Matt. Around the same time another mercenary ran into the room.

"Sir, the explosives are set to go off in a few minutes" yelled the mercenary.

"Good, get everyone outside and finish off the survivors. I'll take care of this one here" said the assassin as he looked back at Matt. His eyes widened to see that all of the mercenaries surrounding Matt were now dead and Matt looked different. He was in his awakened form. The assassin said nothing as he tried to attack Matt, but a Madness Aura arm came out of Matt and grabbed him and threw him into one of the pillars. The assassin was quick to recover and saw that Matt was breathing heavily.

"Don't tell me you're tired already" taunted the assassin. But in a blink of an eye Matt vanished and reappeared in front of him. Matt grabbed the assassin's head and slammed it into the marble pillar; blood began to trickle down from the back of the assassin's head.

"Destroy" Matt simply said and the assassin's eyes widened then life left them. Matt, still grabbing the head of the assassin then threw him with all of his might against another pillar which broke when the assassin hit it. Matt returned to his Noah form and fell to his knee.

"Damn, I shouldn't have done that" said Matt as he breathed heavily. The roof above him then began to collapse which forced Matt to get up and run to the backyard. After what felt like an age of navigating the ruined hallways and killing any straggling mercenaries he could find Matt finally made it outside. He looked at the backyard which now looked like a war zone. The yard was filled with craters caused by thrown dynamite, and bodies of servant, guard, and mercenary alike scattered the grounds. Matt could hear some fighting in the distance so he began to run towards the noise. He didn't get very far until several explosions went off in the mansion which forced Matt to the ground. Matt rolled over and leaned up as he watched the last of his home burn and fall to the ground.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 58 coming soon!**

**So yeah, this chapter lasted a bit longer than I expected so I will be wrapping up in the next chapter. That being said I really hoped you enjoyed this chapter. This one took me a particularly long time to write and I hope it turned out well. Please let me know what you thought of it. Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time! **


	58. Amongst the Ruins

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, Just the OC's**

Matt watched as he sat on the ground as the mansion burned and began to collapse, the smoke from the fires rose high into the air. As more of the mansion fell Matt shook his head; now wasn't the time to worry about this. He stood up and began to walk the ruined yard towards the hedge maze where the sound of fighting recently stopped. As he walked he looked at some of the craters left from the dynamite. There were a few limbs lying around on the ground near some of the craters showing that some had died out here, even with the other Noah outside to protect them. Eventually Matt made it to the hedge maze, there he saw a little over a dozen, maybe two dozen, servants and a few guards as well. Some were lying on the ground as others cared for them; many of them had burn marks, cuts and bruises. He saw Tyki and Road looking over one of the mercenary bodies. Matt walked up to them. Road noticed Matt approaching and turned to face him. Matt looked in her eyes. She had a sense of utter defeat in their eyes. Matt couldn't understand it; they had won, hadn't they? In the end they survived and all of their enemies lay scattered across the yard and the burning mansion. So then why did they have such a look on their face? Then again, he didn't have the right to question it as he knew, without even looking in a mirror; he shared the same look as her.

"Road I'm sorry, I couldn't stop them fast enough" said Matt, his voice filled with guilt. "The mansion is gone, and so many of the servants and guards are dead."

"Don't be" said Tyki before Road could say a word. "You did everything you could and I'm sure you realized it early on that the house wasn't going to be saved. For what you managed to do, a lot of people were saved."

"How can this many be considered a lot" Matt asked as he walked over to them. "Considering how many there were before this attack I'd hardly consider the amount still alive to be a lot. And besides, the only person I ended up directly saving was mother. You guys saved everyone else."

"Perhaps but in this case was it worth saving that one life?"

"Yes, yes it was" said Matt as he looked down at the mercenary body.

"Speaking of attack, did anyone find out who these guys were" asked Road.

"They were mercenaries hired by the Black Order" said Matt and Road and Tyki looked at Matt with a bit of surprise, though they probably realized that would be the case.

"How did you find out" asked Tyki.

"They were being led by a CROW assassin who is now dead and burning in the mansion" Matt said, a bit of anger could be heard when he mentioned the assassin.

"I see" said Tyki as they looked back at the body.

"Where's Sheril" asked Matt.

"He's talking to Tricia, there's a lot of things he needs to explain to her" said Road.

"How is she taking it?"

"She's surprised but that was obvious in the first place. The only thing I know Sheril is leaving out is the Noah's goal."

"That would be an important piece of information to leave out" agreed Matt. As he said that Sheril walked up with Tricia at his side. Matt turned around and looked at them.

"I've explained everything to Tricia" said Sheril.

"And" asked Matt.

"I don't care what you are" said Tricia. "I married your father because I loved him and I love all of you dearly." Matt would have cried but for some reason he just couldn't, he was worried that she would despise him for lying to her for so long and keeping her in the dark about what they truelly were.

"Thanks" said Matt, it was all he really could say, the words he wanted to say though had escaped him. At that moment Tricia looked at Matt's shoulder and saw that it was bleeding.

"Matt, you're hurt said Tricia. Matt placed his hand on the wound then removed it and looked at the blood that stained his hand.

"It's alright, this isn't much" said Matt. "A wound like this won't kill me."

"But you're bleeding so badly" Tricia insisted.

"Trust me, I've survived worse."

"I cannot accept that" said Tricia. "Let me go find the doctor. He survived the attack and should be around here somewhere."

"Mother" said Matt as he grabbed his shirt with his right and and pulled it up revealing all of the scars on Matt's torso. "I've survived worse. This wound is nothing more than a scratch." Tricia was taken off guard by the scars but the one scar that caught her attention was the large scar that ran the length of his torso. She had never seen these before, the only scar she had ever seen was the one on Matt's face and even then nobody gave her a real answer on how he got it, the same with his arm.

"Tell me, did you get these while fighting?"

"I did" said Matt. "The most recent one is the scar on my face which I received shortly after I found Wisely dead. Mother, I'm sure father has told you this already but the people who hired these mercenaries are the same people responsible for Wisely's death."

"I am aware now" said Tricia, who still stared at Matt's chest even though he had lowered his shirt. After an hour or two of continuing explanations, Matt and everyone else filled in many gaps about their Noah selves to Tricia who took it all relatively well. "So are we going to live in this 'ark' you speak of" Tricia asked everyone.

"No, we're going to a place I had taken over not too long ago. We will be safe there as the mansion is rebuilt."

"You don't mean we're going there" asked Sheril. "Are you sure it is suitable for us to live there right now?"

"It's not that bad, I've had the akuma there refurbish it so it would be more comfortable to live in" said Matt. "But first, let's check the remains of the mansion and see if we can't salvage anything from it."

"Will there be anything there" asked Tyki.

"Who knows, but it's worth taking a look" said Matt and the 4 Noah went towards the mansion; Lily stayed with Tricia.

"Do you need any help" asked one of the servants.

"No thank you" Sheril said with a smile. "We don't want to risk anyone else being harmed today. For now, just bring everyone closer to the mansion, I'm sure that the fire has died out by now." The servant nodded and returned to the rest of the survivors.

* * *

><p>The four Noah reached the ruins of the mansion. Some smoke still rose from the now smoldering mansion. As they gazed at the ruins they saw that a few walls still stood as well as a few marble pillars. They stayed close together as they wandered through the wreckage. As expected, they didn't find much. A few books and some clothing were all that they could find. As they were wrapping up their search Matt was walking in the part of the mansion that was around where his room used to be. He noticed something beneath a pile of wood and rubble. As he lifted off the charred wooden planks he was surprised to see 2 safes lying on the ground. They looked pretty damaged but were still closed.<p>

"Well I'll be damned" said Matt with a weak grin as he kneeled down and opened the first safe. Inside were a few bags of candy, obviously intended for Road. "Hey Road, I found some candy that survived the fire. Do you want some now?"

"Not right now" said Road as she sat down on a pile of wood. "I'm not exactly in the mood for candy."

"That's what I thought said Matt as he looked at the second safe. He opened it and looked inside. Matt gave a smile, though it was still a little weak as he reached in.

"What is it" asked Tyki as he looked over Matt's shoulder. In Matt's hands was a black top hat that had a buckle on it. Tyki instantly recognized the hat. "Hey isn't that one of my top hats?"

"Yep" said Matt. "Don't you remember Tyki? You gave me this hat nearly 10 years ago now."

"I remember" said Tyki, "If I recall the hat didn't fit you back then so I'm surprised you kept it." Matt tried the hat on for a moment; it fit a lot better than it did back then. He then took it off and placed the bags of candy inside.

"No it didn't, did it" Matt chuckled. "But I kept it because it meant a lot to me when you gave it to me." Matt stood up they met up with Sheril who was waiting for them. As they left the ruins they saw that everyone had made it back to the house. They collected everything up and an ark gate opened up. The servants and guards, along with Tricia and Lily entered first. Tyki and Road entered next, and as Matt and Sheril were about to enter Matt looked back at the ruins.

"Don't worry Matt" said Sheril as he placed a hand on Matt's shoulder. "The mansion will be rebuilt and we'll be back." Matt smiled a little and nodded.

"Yeah, you're right" said Matt as the two entered the ark gate which quickly closed behind them.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 59 coming soon!**

**So this wraps up this arc. The next chapter will most likely be a filler chapter. Either way I really hoped you enjoyed reading the chapter as I really had a blast writing it. Please let me know what you thought of it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	59. A New Home

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Everyone arrived at Mont Saint Michel through the ark gate. As they entered the quarters of the abbey everyone, except Matt, was surprised to see that the abbey was in fact fully furnished and had a similar feel to the mansion they had just lost; though it was a lot bigger. As the 4 Noah looked at one of the halls that was converted to a dining hall a thought crossed Sheril's mind.

"Matt, where did you get all of this" asked Sheril.

"I had the akumas purchase them" said Matt.

"And how were you able to afford all of this" Sheril asked suspiciously. There was a short, awkward pause.

"Yeah….you might be receiving a few bills at some point" Matt said in a plain tone. Sheril shook his head in a bit upset.

"And how much did all of this cost you?" Matt leaned over to Sheril and whispered into his ear. Sheril nearly choked on his own breath as Matt pulled away from him. "How on earth did you spend that much without me knowing" Sheril asked in disbelief.

"I just had the akuma purchase it using your status as credit" said Matt. "I guess the shop owners didn't ask questions."

"Unbelievable" said Sheril as he rubbed his forehead. "How are we going to be able to afford all of this and rebuild the mansion?"

"Don't worry father" said Matt. "I have refurbished the abbey to be something of a second home for us. We will be able to live here comfortably for quite some time."

"You planned for this" asked Tyki.

"Not really" said Matt. "My original intent was for this place to be something of a safe haven for us, a place where we can go to relax for a while and not worry about being attacked."

"Well I guess in the end it was a good thing you decided not to destroy this place" said Road.

"We could have just lived in the ark" complained Sheril who was still wrapping his head around how much money Matt spent.

"Why? The ark isn't that great of a place to live" said Matt. "Sure it's comfortable but all the other Noah use it as a home as well. I like the fact that we have our own place to call our home." Sheril had to agree with Matt there; he did enjoy having their own home and live as a family.

"I've made sure that everyone has their own quarters, and there are enough rooms for every servant to live comfortably and still have plenty of room to spare. I'm pretty sure that the akuma that are stationed here are showing everyone to their rooms as we speak."

"That's one thing that will have to change" said Sheril.

"What do you mean" asked Matt.

"I don't want any akuma, other than Lily of course, to be inside the abbey while we stay here. That way we can ensure that the servants and gaurds stay safe."

"That shouldn't be a problem" said Matt. "The akuma that guard the fortress stay in the small village below the abbey anyways. Now let me show you to your rooms." Matt then led them out of the dining room.

Matt showed them around the abbey and eventually got to all of their rooms. Amazingly, Matt each of their rooms was identical replicas of their old rooms. The 4 Noah parted ways so that they could settle down for the rest of the day. Matt entered his room and say Lily laying on his bed; he had a small step ladder installed very recently for her so she could get up and down without help. He would have gotten a second bed but she refused when Matt had tried to get her to sleep in a different bed. She appeared to be sleeping, which was proven when Matt flopped onto the bed and scared her awake.

"Sorry about that" said Matt, his face in the blankets as he laid face down on the bed.

"It's ok" Lily said as she yawned and rubbed one of her eye.

"Go back to sleep, I think I'm going to go meditate or something, clear my head" said Matt as he pushed himself back up. Lily yawned again and went under Matt's bed sheets and fell asleep. Matt himself was exhausted but he was too distracted by what had happened to them today to actually fall asleep. Matt left his room, quietly closing the door behind him. Matt decided to go to the one room that hadn't really been refurbished; his mediation room. Matt walked into the circular room and sat down in the middle of the room where the massive stone pillars surrounded him. There were a few pieces of furniture, a desk and chair as well as a small bookcase. This was the room was more or less his own personal study. Matt took a deep breath and began to meditate.

* * *

><p>A week had passed since Matt and the Kamelot family moved into Mont Saint Michel and things were relatively quiet. Sheril had contacted representatives of his government in Portugal stating that the recent assassination attempt has forced him to take some time off. He also contracted some workers to begin reconstruction of the mansion which he was told would take quite a long time to rebuild. Tyki had found the library in the abbey and spent most of his time there. Road had broken into one of the abbey vaults which was revealed to be one of Matt's storage rooms, which was filled with candy which was being cooled in the cold vault; Matt was hoping it would take longer for her to break in but there was nothing he could do about it now. As for Matt, he spent the majority of his time meditating, he rarely left and for the most part nobody bothered him there. Even though everyone there knew by now that the Kamelot family, excluding Tricia, were Noah, Sheril, Tyki, Road and Matt usually stayed in their white forms as most of the servants weren't entirely comfortable seeing them in their Noah form. On a rare occasion Matt was outside on the courtyard that was at the highest point of the abbey. Matt leaned against the stone wall as he looked below at the ocean that brushed up against the island mountain. Road noticed Matt from a different courtyard below Matt and went up to see him. Matt head Road coming and as he turned around he saw Road walking up to him, a bag of candy in her hand as usual.<p>

"You know the supply I have in that vault is all I have right now, eat it all and I'm not going to buy more for a while" Matt said with a grin. Road pouted a little, but she knew that Matt was bluffing….hopefully.

"What are you doing out here" asked Road.

"Enjoying the ocean breeze" said Matt. "Why are you here?" Road shrugged.

"I don't know, just bored I guess."

"You weren't looking for me were you" asked Matt.

"Not really, no" said Road. "I just saw you from the courtyard down there and was wondering what you were up to. I was hoping something fun."

"Well I'm sorry to disappoint you" Matt said sarcastically. Road stuck her tongue out at him. "So we've been here for a week now Road, what do you think of the place?"

"It's fine I guess" said Road. "I mean it's an interesting place and all but I miss our old home."

"The mansion will be rebuilt" said Matt remembering what Sheril had told him as they left the mansion. "We will go home."

"But I want to go home now" whined Road.

"You are so impatient sometimes" said Matt, Road simply scowled at Matt.

"Well they say patience is a virtue" said Road.

"Yeah one you don't have" Matt laughed as he cut Road off before she could even finish her sentence. Road punched Matt in the shoulder but he just laughed more as he rubbed his shoulder.

"You're mean" said Road.

"Like you're one to talk" said Matt as he finally finished laughing. "Anyways I'm sorry if I offended you. I was just having some fun" Matt said with a smile.

"Whatever" said Road as she turned away from Matt.

"Oh don't be like that" Matt grinned as he turned Road back around. "How many times have you gotten a laugh at my expense?"

"Not enough" said Road as she slammed her foot down onto Matt's which caused Matt to leap up onto one foot where Road tripped Matt. Matt landed flat on his face and Road erupted into laughter.

"See? What did I tell you" said Matt who was laughing himself as he stood back up but Road forced him back to the ground. This time Matt rolled away from Road before he stood up. Then he looked at Road, she had a familiar look in her eyes. "You want to play that game again don't you?" Road nodded. "And if you get away, what do you want?"

"I want you to go out and buy more candy of course" said Road. And what happens it you catch me?"

"You can't eat any more candy for the next 2 weeks" said Matt with an evil little smirk on his face. The 2 counted down from 3 and as they hit 1 Road took off but Matt managed to grab her arm and turn her around. "Hey Road, still bored" Matt asked with a grin.

"Not a bit" said Road as Matt let her go and she took off running. Matt waited a few seconds before he began chasing after her.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 60 coming soon!**

**This is just a little filler chapter, but I wanted to progress the story a bit like my other filler chapters. I apologize if the chapter seemed a bit slow, there will hopefully be some action moments tomorrow. Anyways, please let me know what you thought of the chapter!**

**A quick little announcement. I will be on a small vacation starting today and will be back Sunday. I will try to keep updating every day as I am really enjoying writing the story; I just wanted to give fair warning in advance if you don't see an update one day. But again I should stress that I will still try to publish a new chapter every day. I should have internet access so it shouldn't be a problem. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	60. Meeting of the Minds

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt chased Road for nearly an hour. The chase found its way through the entire abbey and into the village below. However, even though Matt had regained nearly all of his strength he wasn't able to catch her. Road's nimbleness helped her escape Matt in the close quarters. Eventually Matt was running through the one main street in the fortress when he stopped and collapsed to the ground after sitting down; he was exhausted.

"That's it" said Matt as he tried to catch his breath. "I give up Road. You win this time." Road then appeared behind Matt and stared down at him.

"Awww, but I was hoping you would but up more of a fight" Road said playfully.

"Yeah well I'm not" said Matt as he rolled over and stood up.

"But look on the bright side, now you get to buy me candy" Road said in a happy voice.

"Not now Road, there's still plenty of candy in the vault. There's no need to go and get more. Besides I think Sheril will kill me if I spend any more money right now. Road frowned.

"No fair, you promised."

"I agreed to buy you more candy Road, I never said when I would buy it" Matt said with a grin. "You should have worded yourself better."

"Fine, go get me candy now" said Road. Matt smiled and patted her on the head.

"Sure thing, but I'm not buying anything right now."

The two reentered the abbey and Matt delivered Road the candy she wanted. The two ended up in the abbey library where they found Tyki who was reading a book. Matt took a seat across from him while Road decided to sit next to Tyki as usual. As Matt grabbed a book himself Tyki looked up.

"I'm surprised" said Tyki.

"What are you talking about" asked Matt as he sat back down.

"I'm surprised you and Road didn't cause any real damage to this place. Usually you two always end up breaking everything you pass."

"Yes well it's not like father will allow any replacements right now, so we avoided as much destruction as possible."

"But a few things did end up 'accidently' broken by the end of it" said Road.

"So I take it Road won" Tyki pointed out.

"Yeah, I just ran out of steam and couldn't keep up" said Matt as Road gave Tyki a triumphant look.

"Strange, you haven't lost in a while Matt. Are you feeling alright" joked Tyki.

"I feel just fine Tyki" said Matt as he now opened the book and was about to read when Lily ran into the room.

"Daddy, I've been looking for you" said Lily as she ran up to him. Matt sighed and put the book down.

"And why is that" asked Matt.

"I don't know" said Lily. "I just missed you."

"Well you found me and guess what, Road has some candy she wants to share with you" said Matt as he gave an evil little grin at Road.

"She does" Lily asked in excitement. Since she became friends with Road, Lily had gotten quite the sweet tooth, it didn't compare to Road but all Lily would really eat was candy now. Road looked up when she heard this.

"Wait, I have what" asked Road as Lily walked over to her.

"Daddy said you have candy you wanted to give me" said Lily as she held out her hands. Road shot a glare at Matt who was snickering under his breath. She looked back at Lily and gave her a warm smile.

"Sure I have some candy" said Road as she gave Lily a few pieces of candy; luckily for Road, Lily didn't eat much so she didn't have to give her that much. Lily happily accepted the candy and sat down on the ground and began to eat the candy. Matt smiled at her and picked his book back up. He was about to finally start reading when Sheril walked in.

"There you are Matt" said Sheril. "I've been looking for you."

"You know what, I'm just going to forget reading right now" Matt said, a bit irritated. Sheril looked confused.

"What are you talking about" asked Sheril.

"Nothing" said Matt as he placed the book down. "What is it that you wanted to see me for?"

"Right well as you know the Earl calls a few Noah together to go over our overall strategies" said Sheril.

"Yeah that's the one you and Road attend all the time" said Matt.

"That is correct" said Sheril. "The Earl has asked for you to attend the next meeting that will happen later today." Matt looked at Sheril in total surprise.

"Why me?"

"Well, excluding Road, who is there because she is the eldest Noah, everyone who attends this meeting is one of the Earl's strategists."

"Sure, but the only ones in the Noah family who are actual strategists are you and Lulubell" said Matt though everyone could hear a bit of spitefulness in Matt's voice when he mentioned Lulubell.

"Well because of your success at the North American Branch, the Earl feels you have earned it" Sheril said with a smile.

"I take it that I don't have a choice in the matter" said Matt.

"No you don't" said Sheril. "We leave in 30 minutes so go get ready. Don't forget to dress formally." Matt grumbled a little bit; he hated the idea of being in the same room as Lulubell. Road laughed a little at Matt and Sheril looked at her. "That goes for you as well."

"Fine" sighed Road and she got up as well.

* * *

><p>Sheril, Matt and Road entered the large circular dining room in the ark. The table had been shrunk so it only had to fit 5. Lulubell had already arrived and had taken her seat to the right of the Earl. As they walked up Sheril looked at Matt who had a look of sheer hatred in his eyes as he looked at Lulubell.<p>

"Don't worry Matt" whispered Sheril. "These meetings usually don't take very long, just keep calm and try not to lash out at Lulubell at all."

"No guarantees" said Matt as he took a seat directly across from where the Earl would be sitting. Road sat to his left and Sheril sat to his right. After a few minutes of silence the Earl finally entered.

"Thank you all for coming today" said the Earl as he took his seat. "As you know, the last few weeks have been fairly eventful. We have launched several attacks on Black Order branches with many of them being a success. Now we have several pieces of the encrypted notes that we seek. Even though there were a few failures, I do believe that overall we are on the right track. I have called you all here so we can discuss our next move."

"My lord" said Lulubell. "I believe we should launch a second wave of attacks on the remaining branches and see if we can't recover the information we seek. With their defenses weakened we should be able to break them and claim what we seek."

The Earl nodded as he listened. "I see, and what do you think of this Sheril?"

"I do believe Lulubell has a point" said Sheril. "Their defenses must have been severely weakened after such large scale attacks. I don't think that any of the branches will be able to hold up against another large scale attack."

"And what do you think about this Matt?" Matt sat silently for a moment before speaking.

"I think it's a terrible idea" said Matt which shocked everyone at the table; though some didn't show it.

"Explain yourself" said the Earl.

"Well it's quite simple" said Matt. "For whatever reason, our attacks failed and I would agree that their defenses would be weaker. However, we don't know for certain just how weakened they really are. If we send out our forces and it turns out that their defenses are still relatively strong then we will lose and end up wasting resources. Furthermore, form what I can tell; it will take more than an army to take out the Central Branch."

"And what do you suggest we do" asked Lulubell who didn't like the fact that Matt was disagreeing with her idea.

"Well for starters we should slowly reduce the amount of actual exorcists that the Black Order has to use. This can be done in several ways. The most obvious is to go out and hunt them down one by one; however I suggest we lure them into traps."

"And what would these traps be" asked the Earl who was now interested.

"We recover some innocence and plant it places. We let the exorcists come and get it and then kill them in ambushes. As well we take out large encampments which will force the Black Order to send out exorcists to defend them. In the end these are all exorcists who would be defending the branches therefore leaving less to actually defend them."

"I support this" said Sheril.

"Same here" said Road. Lulubell said nothing. The Earl thought about what Matt had said.

"Very well. It will take a little longer than I would have liked but in the end I do believe that this will work. Sheril if you have anything to add to this meeting then I will end it."

"Only that we need to pay more attention to the finders. They are better equipped now so it will take more akuma to actually defeat them." The Earl nodded then stood up.

"Wait, are we done already" asked Matt.

"Yes, I have to go make a call. The 16th should be finishing up on her mission and I will want to be ready to hear her report and give her new instructions."

"I see" said Matt. "Well, let her know I said hi" said Matt.

"I will let her know" said the Earl. "Alright, I am off. I will gather information for these attacks. Thank you all for coming." With that said everyone stood up and left the room. Matt, Sheril and Road returned to Mont Saint Michel while Lulubell stayed in the ark.

"That wasn't so bad was it" Sheril asked Matt as they entered the abbey.

"No, but I would rather not do those kinds of meetings" said Matt.

"Well the Earl liked your idea so it looks like we will be doing that for a while" said Road.

"You realize I only said that because I refused to accept Lulubell's plan" asked Matt.

"Of course" said Road. "We all realized that there was no way you would agree with her."

"Figures" said Matt. "But that being said I'm going to go to my room for a bit. I'll talk to you all later" said Matt as he departed from the Sheril and Road.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 61 coming soon!**

**Well this was an interesting chapter to write as it really was all about strategies. I hope you enjoyed it though. Please let me know what you thought of it.**

**I also have another quick announcement to make. As you know, Road and Matt have a pretty good relationship right now. However, I have been told by other readers that they would be interested in a Road Matt pairing. However I would like to know what you think. That being said I have put up a poll on my page regarding that. Please take the poll and let me know if you would want to see a Road Matt pairing or not (or if you don't mind either). I will keep the poll up for a while so there is plenty of time to vote! Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time!**


	61. A Trap is Set

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

The next day Matt found himself meditating when Sheril went to find him. Ever since yesterday Matt had been thinking about how to lure even a few exorcists into a trap and sometime during the night he came up with a plan; all he needed now was the Earl to send him on a mission.

"Matt I'm sorry for disturbing you, I know how much you don't like interruptions when you meditate" said Sheril as he entered Matt's meditation room.

"It's fine father" said Matt as he opened his eyes. "I was just finishing up anyways. What is that you wanted?"

"The Earl has a mission for you" said Sheril. "But he wants to know if you want to have this as a solo mission."

"Why don't you tell me what the mission is before I make that decision" said Matt as he stood up and stretched.

"Right, sorry. I got a little ahead of myself" said Sheril. "Anyways, the Earl wants you to test out the strategy you mentioned yesterday. He wants to see if you can't lure some exorcists into a trap and successfully eliminate them. You will be heading to a town in Spain where we sent reports innocence being located there. If the Black Order works the way we think they do then no matter what they will send people to investigate."

"Sounds simple enough" said Matt as he walked over to his desk. "I came up with a pretty good plan while I was meditating."

"Will you need anyone for this mission?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. I think I need Tyki for this plan. I need people to blend into a crowd well and Tyki has a lot of experience with that."

"What about Road? Usually she is on missions with you" Sheril pointed out.

"Well, I could use backup" said Matt. "As I don't know how many exorcists I will be able to lure into the trap. So it would be good to have someone else watching us."

"Wait, why do you need to blend in with the crowd" Sheril asked confused.

"A simple game of deception" said Matt. "I will simply lure them into a trap not knowing that we are even there."

"Well that is the definition of a trap" said Sheril, a bit sarcastic.

"You know what I mean" said Matt. "Anyways, I need you to go tell Tyki and Road to get ready and tell them to wear civilian clothes."

"Sure thing, when are you leaving" asked Sheril.

"Pretty soon, I want to get this started before any exorcists show up." Sheril was about to leave when Matt remembered something. "Oh that's right I just remembered something. I need a handful of level 2 akuma."

"Sure thing" said Sheril and he then left the room. Matt looked at some papers that were on his desk then left the room himself.

An hour later, Matt met up with Road and Tyki who were waiting for him in the abbey courtyard. Tyki wore what he usually wore when he stayed with his human friends and Road wore some regular clothes, nothing that would drag attention to herself. Matt however showed up wearing some pretty run down clothes. He wore a coat with a hood and some tattered pants. Both arms were covered in bandages as well as most of his face and neck. The only thing you could see was his golden eyes.

"Matt what's up with the getup" asked Road.

"Unlike you I have several features that can easily distinguish me. The scar on my eye and of course my left arm is a dead giveaway. By covering my body in bandages and wearing these clothes not only do I conceal my identity but I also will be able to blend in as a sickly poor person."

"Ok…but why did you cover your right arm in bandages" asked Road.

"Because I am not leaving my Noah form for this mission" said Matt. "It will all make sense later on. You will see." With that said Road summoned her door and the 3 walked through.

* * *

><p>The 3 Noah arrived in the small town in Spain. The streets were fairly busy as they walked out of an alleyway.<p>

"So what's the plan Matt" asked Tyki.

"Simple, if we've gotten here early enough then the first people to arrive will be finders. We need to kill off everyone except 1 who will call in some exorcists for backup."

"This sounds like it's going to take a while" Road complained.

"All good traps take time to set up Road. And if this one works then we should be able to kill off the exorcists before they even know we're here and they will keep sending more and more until they give up, or they figure it out."

"While it's a good plan, it still will take a while to complete" said Tyki. "We should also find a hotel room so that we can rest at night."

"That's fine. We can do that while we search for the finders" said Matt. "We will need to spread out though; if we stay to close the finders will suspect something." With that said the 3 left the alleyway and began to walk down the crowded street. Everyone paced themselves away from one another to avoid any form of suspicion. After a short time, they discovered that the finders had not yet arrived so they sought out a hotel. They managed to find a fairly large hotel that was on the main street of the town and took a room that overlooked the street. Afterwards, they continued to wander the streets. After a few hours passed they finally found a group of 4 finders walking through the street. The 3 Noah followed them for a little bit. Road stayed in front of them while Matt walked parallel to them and Tyki followed behind them. When they saw that they didn't have any golems following them Matt signaled to take them out silently. They quickly converged on the unsuspecting finders. The attack was quick and efficient. At almost the exact same time Road threw a few of her candles into the chest of one of the finders while Tyki ran up behind another and used his 'choose' ability to cut all of the arteries connecting the finder's heart as well as take out his vocal cords so he couldn't scream. Matt then shot a stone spike, which ripped apart the bandage on his hand, at the third exorcist's head. At the same time he grabbed the fourth exorcist and the now dead third exorcist and dragged them into an alleyway as Road and Tyki did the same.

* * *

><p>Inside the alleyway Matt created 2 stone walls at either side of the alleyway to prevent anyone from entering. The surviving finder was cowering as he was thrown to the ground.<p>

"Please don't kill me" pleaded the finder as he cowered against a building wall. Matt walked up and crouched down and pulled down the bandages that covered his face, revealing an evil grin.

"Oh don't worry, we won't kill you" said Matt. "As long as you do exactly what I say."

"W-what is it you want me to do" asked the finder.

"I need you to call your headquarters and request that a few exorcists come to aid you" said Matt.

"They won't simply send exorcists here" the finder said, still terrified.

"That is why you are going to tell them that innocence is here and that akuma have been seen just outside of the town. You get them to send exorcists here and you get to live. I think that's a pretty good deal, don't you think?" The finder nodded and Matt smiled. "Excellent, now make the call." The finder pulled out the metal bag he carried and pulled out a phone. After a few minutes of talking the finder hung up the phone.

"They said they will send a group of exorcists here to aid me" the finder said, still worried that they would kill him still. "They'll be here in a day or two." Matt gave the finder a warm smile.

"There, that wasn't so hard now was it" asked Matt in a friendly tone. The finder shook his head.

"So you'll let me go, right?"

"Not quite yet" said Matt.

"But you promised" said the finder.

"I promised I would spare your life. I said nothing about letting you go, not yet at least" said Matt. "We can't have you letting the Black Order know they are having their exorcists walking into a trap now do they? No, you will be staying with us as a prisoner until this whole ordeal is over. Once we are done here you will be free to leave."

"You swear?"

"Of course" said Matt. "I am a man of my word. Tyki, I will be taking the finder back to the hotel with Road, can you dispose of the bodies?"

"Why do I have to" asked Tyki.

"Because we both know that Road won't do it and I have to make sure this good man stays safe" Matt said with a smile. "It shouldn't take too long, there's a river nearby that you can dump the bodies."

"Fine" sighed Tyki as he piled the bodies and put them into bags that Matt had brought. Matt lowered the stone walls he created and escorted the finder back to the hotel while Tyki dragged the bodies away.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 62 coming soon!**

**This is the first of a 2 part arc; the next chapter will of course conclude this little arc. This was an interesting chapter to write because I hadn't written a Noah trap before until now so it was fun to figure out how it would work. Anyways let me know what you thought of the chapter!**

**I would just like to remind everyone that I have a poll on my page regarding a Road Matt pairing. I would really appreciate it if you would go to my page to vote on what you think should happen there. If you can't vote there just leave a review (anyone should be able to) stating your opinion on the matter, thanks! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	62. Spring the Trap

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt and Road escorted the finder back to the hotel that they were staying at. They had rented out a 2 room suite so that both Road and Tyki could have their own room. As they entered the room, the finder looked around the large room. For some reason he expected to find weapons and akuma in the room as well as other devices that they would have brought along, and was surprised to see that the room was perfectly normal. Matt saw the surprise in the finder's eyes.

"Something the matter" asked Matt.

"No, it's just I would've thought that the room you rented out would have more, I don't know, bad things in it" said the finder, a bit embarrassed. Matt laughed a little.

"What exactly does the Black Order say about us" asked Matt asked jokingly. The finder was about to speak but Matt interrupted him. "On second thought don't tell me. Something tells me I don't want to know what they say." The 3 walked into the center of the suite. "Take a seat" said Matt as he gestured to the couch. The finder sat down hesitantly; he was still worried that the Noah would kill him.

"Hey I'll be right back" Road said to Matt. "I'm going to take a shower."

"That's fine. But I didn't need to know what you were doing Road" said Matt. Road gave Matt a quick playful glare then twirled around and entered one of the 2 bedrooms. Walked over to the kitchen in the suite and began removing the bandages that were on him. The finder watched Matt as he removed the bandages and laid them down on the down on the table. The finder's eyes widened when he saw Matt's black left arm.

"You're the Noah of Madness aren't you" asked the finder, a bit of fear returned to his voice. Matt turned around with a little grin on his face.

"I might be" said Matt as he walked over and sat down in a chair across from the finder. "Why does that matter?"

"Well you're infamous in the Black Order. They say that nobody that you can't be beaten." Matt laughed.

"Well that's partially true. If they mean I can't be killed, well I haven't died yet have I? As for being beaten I can say that I have lost several times. But there's an old saying; what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. I like to think that's why I have such a reputation, though I must say I am flattered that they think of me like that. Maybe I should send them a thank you letter" Matt said sarcastically.

"I have a question" said the finder; Matt looked at him with a bit of interest.

"Ask away. But after I answer you must answer a question of mine." The finder nodded.

"How are you still alive? I've read a few reports, like the Battle of the Plains. You were thought to be dead several times yet here you are, sitting in front of me." There was a pause before Matt spoke.

"I can't say for certain why I have yet to die. But I like to think it's because I have a reason for living" said Matt as he looked at the door Road entered. "I care for my family and have sworn to protect them with my life. That is why I fight is why I haven't been killed yet."

"I see" said the finder. He didn't realize that this was the reason he fought. "But I thought that the Noah fight for the destruction of the world."

"We all have a reason for fighting but we all follow the Millennium Earl who has his reason therefore his reason to fight is also ours" said Matt. "But enough about me, it's time to figure out something about you."

"What do you mean" asked the finder.

"I have fought and have killed many exorcists and finders over the years and not one has ever truly surrendered to me. So I wonder, why did you" asked Matt as he leaned forward in anticipation for what the finder would say.

"I only joined the Black Order a short time ago" said the finder. "I signed up to work in the science division however they suddenly began recruiting people within the other departments to become finders. I was chosen even though I was unwilling. I didn't want to be on the front lines and I certainly don't want to die. I'm just a scientist."

"Very interesting" said Matt as he heard the door opened to the suite. Matt turned around to see Tyki enter the room. "I take it you got everything taken care of" Matt asked Tyki.

"Yeah. Hey Matt next time you can dump the bodies" complained Tyki.

"Not a chance, you're so good at it" Matt said sarcastically. "We wouldn't want to waste your obvious talent for it now would we?" Tyki grumbled and entered his room.

* * *

><p>The next day arrived and the finder, who slept on the couch, woke up. He saw Matt was eating some food.<p>

"How long have you been up" asked the finder, forgetting that he was still being held by the enemy.

"Who ever said I went to sleep" said Matt. Road and Tyki eventually left their rooms and ate as well before preparing for the day. Matt put all of the bandages back onto his body making him almost unrecognizable. "Hey finder, when are the exorcists going to be here" asked Matt.

"In a few hours I believe" said the finder.

"Good, you've done a great job finder" said Matt. "When we deal with the exorcists you will be free to leave." Tyki then sat the finder down in the chair across from the couch and tied him up so he couldn't move.

"Don't worry" said Tyki as he finished tying the finder up. "This is just precautionary so you don't tip off the exorcists." The 3 Noah then left their room.

The 3 Noah wandered around the city, all they had to do now was wait until the akuma outside of the city were destroyed. And after a few hours that was what happened, and the 3 Noah once again dispersed.

Road watched as 5 exorcists entered the town. They didn't notice her as she began to follow them at a safe distance. Tyki watched from the shadows. He used his 'choose' ability to remain undetected as he followed them from the opposite side of the street. Matt however was waiting a good distance in front of them. He had an akuma with him who was disguised as a shopkeeper. Once the exorcist were in sight Matt began to run as if he was being chased. The disguised akuma chased after Matt yelling and calling Matt a thief. The yelling caught the attention of everyone around including the exorcists. As Matt approached them he took a quick look back as if he was hoping he had escaped the shop owner. He turned back around and was about to run into 2 exorcists who were in the process of stepping out of the way. Matt as he was about to pass them turned his right arm into a sword and stabbed the exorcist to his right as he grabbed the exorcist to his left by the neck. Matt thrust the two exorcists to the ground. The exorcist on the left had his neck broken as he hit the ground and the exorcist on his right was slowly dying as Matt's arm had pierced his heart.

The remaining 3 exorcists watched in shock as this happened. One of them went to activate his innocence but Matt returned his arm to normal and aimed his palm at the exorcist. A stone spike shot out of his hand piercing the exorcist in the eye and went completely into his head. The exorcist fell down dead. Matt was about to react to the last 2 when Matt felt a sharp pain in his side. He looked down to see a few spikes were impaled into his side. Matt winced in pain as he pulled the first of a few spikes out of him. At the same time Tyki and Road decided to act. Road created two candles and held them in both her hands. She ran up behind one of the exorcist and kicked his knee in which caused him to fall to a knee. Road then spun around him and stabbed both candles into the exorcist's eyes before creating one last candle and thrust it into his throat. Tyki simply walked up behind the exorcist who attacked Matt and removed his heart before he could react to Tyki.

Matt stood up and stared at the newly killed exorcists as he pulled the last of the spikes out of him.

"That was easier than expected" said Road.

"It helps that they didn't expect the attack" answered Tyki as he destroyed the exorcists' innocence.

"That's right, they thought they had dealt with the attacking force outside of the town and didn't expect us. It also helps that we got the drop on them" said Matt who clutched his side.

"You going to be alright" asked Road.

"Just fine" said Matt. "Just a few scratches, nothing to worry about."

"You let your guard down, I'm surprised" said Tyki.

"Yeah well I was always known to be reckless" said Matt. It was at this moment that he noticed that nobody was around anymore; the citizens of the town had fled the area. "Tyki, Road, let's get out of here before we have any more attention drawn to us." Road nodded and summoned her door. Tyki and Road entered the door, but before he entered he turned to the akuma who was chasing him. "I need you to go to our hotel room and release the finder there. Make sure nobody kills him, he is free to leave." The akuma nodded and ran off. At the same time he saw several police officers running towards him. Matt simply bowed and entered Road's door which closed and disappeared before their very eyes.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 63 coming soon!**

**Well this was an interesting chapter to write, and a long one to write as well. This marks the end of the mini arc that included the last chapter. I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it.**

**As yet another reminder, the poll dealing with whether or not Matt and Road should be a pairing is still active (I will continue to remind until the poll is over). Please go and vote letting me know what you think. Also, thank you everyone who has voted so far. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	63. Poisoned

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Road, Tyki and Matt found themselves back in the courtyard of Mont Saint Michel. They were a bit surprised to see Sheril waiting for them near the entrance to the abbey. As they walked up Sheril looked at them and smiled.

"Welcome back" Sheril said warmly. "I'm glad to see you've all returned safely."

"It's good to be back" said Road as they walked up to them; Matt had a slight limp however as one of the spikes that had hit him in the side hit his thigh. "That mission took way longer than expected."

"Well you were gone for the better part of 2 days" Sheril pointed out. "Speaking of the mission, how did it go?"

"It went of perfectly" said Matt, who wasn't showing any indication of pain despite the fact that he was bleeding. "It went off without any problems. The exorcists didn't see it coming and in the end 5 exorcists are now dead, their innocence destroyed." Sheril looked at Matt's wound.

"Doesn't look like that" said Sheril.

"It was a lucky shot, nothing more" Matt insisted. "It will heal like all my other injuries. I just need some rest."

"Should I let the Earl know that you were injured during the fight?"

"No! There's no need for that. I don't want the Earl to think that this strategy won't work" said Matt.

"That's fine, but I don't think you getting hurt will affect his choice to use your plan" said Sheril.

"I'm not willing to take that chance" said Matt. "Lulubell's plan won't work so I need to make sure that my plan does."

"I understand" said Sheril. "However we should get those injuries looked at." Sheril then walked up to Matt who shot him a glare.

"I said I'll be fine" Matt said angrily. "I just need to rest a bit." Matt then walked past Sheril and entered the Abbey. Sheril looked at Road and Tyki, a bit of concern could be seen on his face.

"How bad was his injury" asked Sheril.

"It didn't look to bad" said Tyki. "He was hit in the side by a few spikes but other than that the wounds didn't look to serious."

"He's dripping blood" said Sheril as he pointed to the trail of blood drops that followed Matt's path.

"The boy is too stubborn to let us help him right now" said Tyki. "Road, can you see if you can't convince him to get those wounds looked at?"

"I'll see what I can do" said Road and she entered the abbey.

* * *

><p>Matt quickly walked through the abbey as he went to his meditation room. He didn't know why he snapped at Sheril, he would have to apologize later. As Matt walked he found himself beginning to walk slower and slower. The pain in his side and thigh began to fade but was replaced with numbness. He couldn't understand, it was just a simple wound. So why was it giving him so much trouble? By the time Matt entered his meditation room he could no longer feel his left leg as well as the rest of the left side of his body. He slowly limped his way into the circle of pillars and leaned against one as he sat down onto the cold stone floor. As he sat he adjusted himself so he was on his back as he leaned against the pillar as he clutched his side.<p>

Road entered a few minutes after Matt had sat down, she saw Matt sitting on the ground. He was in his white form and he appeared to be very pale and breathing heavily as sweat came from his face. He looked awful which she found strange seeing as he looked fine just a few minutes ago. Road also noticed the small pool of blood next to Matt; his wound hadn't begun to heal yet. Road walked over to Matt who looked at Road.

"You know you should really get that looked at" said Road as she walked up to Matt and leaned down a bit.

"No I don't" Matt said stubbornly, though he still breathed very heavily. "I told you guys that these wounds aren't big enough for you to worry about." Road rolled her eyes.

"Did you ever think for a minute that those spikes might have had an after effect" asked Road. Matt looked at her, confused.

"What are you talking about? I've never run into a innocence weapon that had an after effect."

"Matt, have you looked in a mirror" said Road in disbelief that Matt doubted her logic. "You've been home for barely 5 minutes and you look like you're on the verge of death! The spikes obviously had some effect on you that took some time to set in." Matt looked up at Road, he was feeling awful now, and not because of what Road said, he really felt sick.

"Road" said Matt, his breaths now quickening a bit. "I think you might be right." Matt suddenly vomited across onto the ground, his head felt extremely light as he collapsed to the ground and passed out.

* * *

><p>Matt slowly opened his eyes to only see nothing but blurs; he couldn't make anything out. He could hear some voices, but those too were also a blur; he couldn't understand them at all. Eventually though his vision began to focus and his hearing improved. He found himself in his room with a Skull looking over him, a very large needle in his hand filled with a strange liquid.<p>

"W-what's going on" Matt asked wearily.

"Well looks like you're finally coming to your senses" said the Skull. He looked passed the Skull to see Tyki standing behind the Skull, watching. "You've been poisoned" said the Skull. "Apparently, those spikes you were hit with were laced with a very potent poison."

"Does that mean I'm not going to make it" asked Matt, the Skull laughed a little which Matt did not appreciate.

"Well the poison is very strong and, in high enough quantities, could probably kill a Noah. However you weren't injected with nearly enough poison to kill you. This amount of poison could probably kill a level 2 and maybe a weak level 3 akuma, but you, not a chance."

"So then I'll be alright" Matt said in relief.

"Well not quite" said the Skull.

"Great, more good news" Matt said sarcastically which made Tyki laugh a little under his breath.

"The poison won't kill you but it will immobilize you unless we act quickly."

"Let me guess, it has something to do with that large needle" said Matt.

"That is correct. Now I'm going to need you to roll over on your side. The antidote has to be administered at the point where the poison entered your body."

"Fantastic" Matt said sarcastically as he rolled onto his side, exposing the 4 holes in his side.

"Now this will probably hurt a bit" said the Skull as he aimed the needle at the first wound.

"I don't think the pain will be a-AHHHHH" Matt yelled in pain as the Skull injected the antidote into the first wound. The pain was unbelievable, like rubbing salt on a wound. Matt was wondering how this was possibly going to help. The pain faded away as the Skull pulled the needle out and placed it on the table. "Thank goodness that's over" Matt said in relief.

"It's not over yet" said the Skull. "We still have to inject you 3 more times. Remember the antidote must enter where the poison entered, and the poison entered in 4 different spots."

"Son of a bitch" Matt grumbled as the Skull pulled out another needle from a bag and injected Matt. This time he didn't scream even though the pain was the same. This continued 2 more times until the Skull pulled out the last needle and placed it in the bag he had. The Skull then stitched the wounds closed to prevent any more blood loss.

"There we go, all done" said the Skull as he threw away the needle he used to stitch Matt up.

"Thank god for that" said Matt.

"Now the antidote will take a little while before the poison is completely dealt with so I suggest you don't move much or have your heart rate increase that much over the next few days" said the Skull as he bowed a little then left the room. Matt thought about what the Skull has said. He understood the whole 'don't move around' part but why include his heart rate? Matt decided not to worry about it as he wasn't planning on doing anything for a while anyways. He looked back up at Tyki who was still standing at the end of his bed,

"Hey Tyki, where's Road" asked Matt, he remembered talking to her before he passed out.

"She's with Lily right now, keeping her occupied. Lily doesn't know about what happened and doesn't want her to get worried."

"That's good, the last thing I need is for Lily to overreact to this" said Matt as he laid his head back onto his pillow.

"I told Road I'd let her know when you got better so I will tell her that you will be alright but it will still be a while before you're back to normal" said Tyki.

"Thanks, oh and keep Lily out of my room if you can, she can stay with Road until I recover."

"I will let them know" said Tyki with a smile as he left the room. Matt looked up at his ceiling for a moment before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 64 coming soon!**

**This was a fun chapter to write as I had been sitting on this idea for a while now but never had a good reason to write it. I hope you enjoyed reading it.**

**Ok, several chapters back I announced that I would be doing a crossover with Liza Akuma form the story Noah of Balance by SpiderWraith (you can either search for it or use my page to go to it as it is in my favorite stories tab. I would highly recommend reading it). Well I just wanted to say that it is still going to happen and will most likely happen this week! I just wanted to let you all know as it has been a while since I said I announced it was going to happen. Also, the poll on my page is still active so please vote. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	64. Misunderstanding

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Two days passed since Matt had returned from his latest mission and he was now finally recovering from his injury. The poison that was in his body dissipated after the first day so for the most the day Matt didn't really move at all. By the second day he was able to move around, though he did spend his time in bed and his wounds finally began to heal. Tyki had decided to watch over Matt for the time and kept Lily and Road from visiting Matt; on Matt's request. Matt finally after these 2 days leaned up which immediately caught Tyki's attention. Tyki stood up from his chair and put down his book and walked over to him.

"Matt, are you all right" asked Tyki.

"Yeah, I'm fine" said Matt as he scratched his back.

"How are you feeling?"

"Much better, thanks" Matt smiled.

"So does this mean you're finally going to let Road and Lily into the room" asked Tyki. "They've wanted to see how you are doing ever since passed out." Matt thought about it for a moment.

"Sure, why not. Go get them" said Matt and Tyki smiled.

"Alright, I'll be right back" said Tyki and he left the room. This left Matt alone in the room where the only noise being made was the clicking sound of the clock.

It felt like hours had passed since Tyki left, but in reality it had only been a few minutes the door to his room opened and Lily came running into the room with Tyki right behind her and Road entered after him. Lily ran happily towards Matt who smiled as she climbed onto the bed. She crawled on the bed and sat on Matt's lap. However she sat too much on the left side of Matt which put a lot of pressure on his wound in his thigh which caused Matt to wince a little in pain. Lily looked at Matt confused as Matt forced a smile as he picked her up and placed her next to him.

"Daddy, are you alright" asked Lily.

"Of course Lily, I'm fine" said Matt.

"Then why didn't you let me into the room?"

"Because I didn't want you to worry" said Matt.

"That didn't help" said Road. Matt looked at her.

"What do you mean?"

"Even though I kept her occupied the last 2 days Lily was still extremely worried about you" said Road. Matt looked at Lily.

"Is that true" Matt asked Lily who simply nodded. "Well I'm sorry that I worried you, next time I'll let you in the room if that makes it any better." Lily smiled and hugged Matt who just put his arm around her.

"I would rather you not be hurt again" said Lily which made Matt smile.

"Yeah, like that's going to happen" Road joked. Matt shot a glare at Road. "Well it's true…"

"I don't care if it's true or not, you didn't need to say it" said Matt, a bit upset with Road which he immediately got over. "By the way Road, I'm sorry for not listening to you back in the meditation room."

"Yeah it wasn't one of your finer moments" said Road.

"No it wasn't was it" Matt grinned. At the same time Sheril entered the room.

"Matt, it's good to see you up" Sheril said with a smile. Matt's face suddenly became very serious.

"Father, does the Earl know about this" asked Matt.

"Well I gave him the report you told me to give but after you passed out he found out and sent one of the Skulls here to deal with the problem" said Sheril. Matt muttered something to himself which to everyone sounded like a string of expletives. Matt then began to get out of bed.

"What do you think you're doing" asked Tyki as he tried to keep Matt on the bed, but Matt managed to get passed him.

"I'm going to talk to the Earl" said Matt. "I must make sure that he understands that the plan worked well and that my injury was a fluke."

"Matt I don't see what you're worrying so much about" said Road who also tried to stop him. "I'm sure the Earl will take the success of the mission onto account." Matt became very upset.

"Don't any of you get it" Matt said angrily. "This mission had to go off without any problems so that he would know that the strategy I placed would work."

"Right and that happened" said Tyki.

"No it didn't, the Earl will likely believe that the ambush failed and I ended up getting hurt because of it. Meaning my idea failed and therefore will result in Lulubell's idea."  
>"So this is about Lulubell and not the actual plan" said Sheril.<p>

"No, no, no! This has nothing to do with her. It's the plan she has that I have a problem with. The plan would call for the Noah to participate in every attack on the remaining branches. And we all know the Central Branch is without a doubt the most defended of all the branches."  
>"I do not understand" said Road.<p>

"In order to attack Central, the Earl would send the best and most experienced of the Noah to fight there. And who among the Noah fit that description?"

"Us" said Sheril.

"Correct, and as it stands, any attack against Central would be a suicide mission. I'll be damned if I will allow all of you to die in a pointless fight!" The other Noah looked at Matt silently after what he had just said. Matt waited for a response but as he saw that he wasn't going to get one he left his room. Matt entered the courtyard and an ark gate opened for Matt which he immediately entered.

* * *

><p>Matt exited the gate and found himself on the ark. There waiting for him was the Millennium Earl.<p>

"Ah welcome Matt" the Earl said in a cheerful tone. "What can I do for you today?"

"My Lord, I've come to discuss my most recent mission" said Matt as he walked up to the Earl.

"It didn't go as expected did it" said the Earl.

"Actually it did, and that's what I'm here; to clarify the situation."

"I understand" said the Earl. "Come discuss with me as we walk." Matt nodded and began to walk with the Earl through the ark. "So explain what happened. From what I can tell the mission did not go according to plan."

"Well that's not true" said Matt. "The plan worked just fine. We captured a finder who gave the exorcists false information about innocence being in the town which brought 5 exorcists to the town the next day."

"So you were able to lure them into a trap. And then?"

"The attack went off without any problems" said Matt. "The exorcists didn't see the attack coming."

"Yet somehow you ended up severely injured" the Earl pointed out.

"That's true, but the injury I received came after the initial attack. By the time they could attack, 3 of the 5 exorcists were already dead. The one who hit me simply had quick reactions to the situation but was killed less than a moment later."

"I see, so if it wasn't for that exorcist the plan would've turned out well?"

"That is correct. The other exorcists didn't even activate his innocence before being killed."

"That's good to hear" the Earl said happily. "I guess I misread what had happened and thought that you were covering up the mission a little."

"Well I did tell Sheril to not tell you about the injury I got" said Matt. "But at the time I didn't realize that I was poisoned and I figured you would misunderstand my injury if Sheril told you. I didn't want to have the conversation we're having right now."

"I understand Matt but when I want a mission report I want to know everything."

"I understand. I will make sure to do that from now on" said Matt.

"Good" the Earl said cheerfully. "Now was there anything else you would like to discuss?"

"No my Lord" said Matt. "I simply came here to clarify the misunderstanding about my injury." The two returned to the ark gate which Matt entered from.

"Very well then I take it you will be returning to the fortress?"

"I am" said Matt.

"Then I will contact you when I have a new assignment for you" said the Earl as Matt walked towards the ark gate.

"I look forward to it" Matt said with a smile.

"Oh one more thing" said the Earl. Matt looked at the Earl a bit confused about what the Earl wanted. "The 16th has finished her mission and will be returning home in the next few days. She decided she wanted to travel back instead of using the ark gate. I figured you would want to know."

"Thank you for letting me know" said Matt, who realized he would probably have to tell Tyki this as well. Matt bowed a little to the Earl then entered the ark gate to go home.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 65 coming soon!**

**Well that's it for this little chapter. I hope you enjoyed it! This one was fun to write as I do enjoy writing about Matt saying how much he cares for his family. Anyways please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time!**


	65. Scouting Party

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt arrived in the courtyard of the abbey. There waiting for him was Sheril. Sheril spoke as Matt approached him.

"Matt, I'm sorry for not understanding your reasoning earlier" said Sheril, Matt could tell by his voice that it was a sincere apology.

"It's fine" said Matt,

"I wasn't thinking. I should have realized that was your intentions from the very beginning" said Sheril apparently missing what Matt had said.

"I said it's find" said Matt as he reached Sheril. He stood there for a minute then walked over to the edge of the courtyard that overlooked the entrance of the fortress.

"So how did your talk with the Earl go" asked Sheril as he walked over to him.

"Well I was right, he did assume the mission was a failure of sorts" said Matt. "But after explaining everything to him the Earl seems to better understand what had happened during the mission."

"That's good to hear" Sheril said in a happy tone. "I take it then that the Earl will stick to your plan?"

"Well that's what I took away from our conversation, yes" said Matt as he looked towards the mainland. "In the end everything turned out just fine."

"Did he happen to mention anything about your next mission?"

"No he didn't" said Matt, "but I don't see why it concerns you so much Father. I'm sure you would've found out either way if I did have a mission."

"I ask because I am your father Matt" Sheril said with a smile. "I want to know when you leave."

"Oh no, don't tell me you're trying to have one of those father son moment" Matt grinned. "That's the last thing I need from you. This isn't the right moment for that."

"Sorry, but I felt that it was an appropriate moment for one" said Sheril. Matt sighed a little.

"Maybe it was, but you're not exactly good at giving those moments Father" said Matt. Sheril laughed a little.

"Well at least I try" said Sheril. "Doesn't that count for something?"

"Perhaps" said Matt. "Then again, you already did more for me than my real father ever did for me" Matt said in a serious, yet sad tone. Sheril was surprised by this, Matt never mentioned his real father before.

"Matt, what do you mean."

"I mean you've done more for me than my father had ever done for me from the moment I met you."

"How so?"

"You became my father" said Matt. "I don't really know much about who my real father was. My mom never spoke of him. He either left her or died, I didn't care one way or another. I had no father in my opinion, so you becoming my father filled a void that was always open in my life." Sheril stared at Matt, not believing what he had just heard. Matt looked up at Sheril and saw the surprised look. "What" Matt asked, confused by the look on Sheril's face.

Sheril shook his head for a moment. "Nothing, it's just you've never mentioned this before so I'm a bit surprised you mentioned it."

"I just figured you knew all this time" said Matt. "Anyways I just wanted to say that. You may not be the best father by any standards, but luckily for you I have no standards so I can safely say you are the best father I've ever had" Matt smiled.

"Thanks…I think" said Sheril, not sure whether that was a complement or not.

"Not a problem" said Matt. "By the way, there was 1 thing the Earl said that caught my attention."

"Oh? What was that?"

"He mentioned that the 16th has finished up her mission and is heading home as we speak; though she is taking her time returning."

"Is that so" Sheril said with interest. "This is something Tyki would like to hear about."

"My thoughts exactly, but I'm going to let you take care of that one" Matt said with a smile. Matt looked back out at the mainland but this time something caught his eye. "Hey Sheril, call together some of the akuma to the main gate" said Matt, his voice a bit more serious.

"Why do I need to do that" asked Sheril.

"We have some guests" Matt said with a grin as he walked into the abbey to head down to the town below. Sheril looked out at the mainland, wondering what Matt had seen. It took him a moment to notice it but after a minute he saw a somewhat large group of people standing on the shore of the mainland. Sheril then followed after Matt. As Sheril entered the abbey he saw Tyki walk up.

"Hey Sheril, I saw you and Matt talking from the other courtyard, what was going on" asked Tyki

"I think we just had a father son moment" said Sheril who was unsure if that really just happened. Tyki laughed a little.

"I'm sure you did. You know, despite what he says he really does like you as a father" said Tyki.

"What makes you say that?"

"I've heard him talk about it to himself now and then."

"Really" asked Sheril in a bit of disbelief.

"Yeah, just don't tell him I said that" said Tyki. "By the way where are you going?"

"To gather a few akuma. There is a group of people on the shore."

"Black Order?"

"Most likely."

"Does he need any help?"

"Doubt it" said Sheril and Tyki grinned.

"Right then I guess I'll just head back to the library or something."

"Sure. By the way Tyki after all of this I have to let you know something" said Sheril as Tyki walked away.

"I look forward to hearing it" said Tyki as he left the room.

Sheril and Matt left the abbey's main gate and the two split ways and followed different paths. Sheril followed the path that led into the town. While Matt followed a path that brought him to a long, winding set of stairs that hugged the steep mountain which led to the guard tower near the main entrance. As Matt reached the wall he saw that several of the akuma that were instructed to guard the fortress were lining up behind the door that led out into the natural causeway. Luckily for Matt it was low tide so the ocean had receded behind the mountain. The door then opened and the akuma began to march out of the city in rows of 2. Matt leapt down and landed between the two rows and quickly walked to the front of the line.

* * *

><p>On the shore, a large group of finders as well as 2 exorcists were standing around.<p>

"Remember, our instructions were simply to scout and see if we can get any idea about how many akuma are here defending the fortress" said one of the exorcists.

"I don't get it" said the other exorcist. "If the Order wants this place so badly then why haven't they sent a large force to take it back?"

"Because this fortress is difficult to attack" said the first exorcist. "If we can't get an estimate on how large the defending force is then we will most likely walk into a slaughter." At the same time some of the finders began to speak in a worried tone. The exorcist looked up and saw the akumas walking towards them. However, he could tell that the akumas were not what worried the finders; it was the person walking in front of them. The exorcist instantly recognized Matt and he turned to the finder closest to him.

You, radio in HQ" said the exorcist. "Tell them that we think we know where the kamelot family is hiding out." The finder nodded and pulled out a phone from the metal bag on his back. At the same time though several stone clones, shaped like soldiers, rose out of the ground and quickly surrounded them. A minute later, Matt arrived with the akuma. Matt reached the encircled finders and exorcists and he gave them a rather friendly smile.

"Well, well, well" said Matt. "What do we have here? Have some of the Black Order soldiers lost their way" Matt asked mockingly.

"If I remember correctly, this fortress belongs to us" said the first exorcist. Matt gave him confused look, though it was obvious that he was pretending.

"Really? Then why is it that it is completely occupied by akuma and you 2 exorcists are the only exorcists for quite some distance?"

"You and I both know why that is" said the exorcist as he looked at the finder who was still on the phone. Matt noticed this and immediately a stone spike shot out of the ground and pierced the finder in the back.

"There's no need to call your friends" Matt said with a grin.

"And why is that" asked the first exorcist.

"Isn't that obvious? Because soon you'll all be dead anyways. Unless you surrender of course."

"We will never surrender to you" said the second exorcist.

"Such a shame, I really wasn't in the mood to have exorcists killed but whatever, it should prove somewhat entertaining." Matt then motioned at the akuma who all transformed. Matt made another motion and all the akuma swarmed and attacked the trapped finders and exorcists. The stone clones Matt had made it virtually impossible for them to escape. Matt watched as every finder and the 2 exorcists were slaughtered. In the end only 4 akuma were destroyed.

As the last exorcist fell Matt let out a yawn.  
>"Well that proved to be more boring than I thought. Can you guys clean up the mess" Matt asked the akumas. "I'm going back into the fortress."<p>

"We'll take care of it right away" said one of the akumas.

"Good, have fun then" said Matt as he waved and left the akumas to clean up the mess.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 66 coming soon!**

**This chapter was fun because I really haven't written to many "father son" moments for Sheril and Matt which I've wanted to do for a little while now. Plus I was able to reveal a little about Matt's past which I always enjoy writing about. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**On a separate not, the poll running on my page I have decided to let run until the end of Friday. So please get your votes in and thank you to everyone who has voted already. As a reminder of what the poll is, it is about whether or not Road and Matt should have a relationship. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	66. Denial

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**  
>Matt reentered the fortress and made his way back up to the main gate of the abbey. As he walked up the steep steps Matt looked back at the mainland and saw that the akuma there were finishing up with the bodies.<p>

"I shouldn't have even bothered going myself. That was incredibly boring" Matt said to himself as he turned back and continued up the stairs. Eventually Matt reached the main doors to the lower part of the abbey. As he walked up the door slowly opened and there to greet him was one of the butlers. The butler was taken back a bit by Matt's appearance. Even though he knew about Matt being a Noah and had seen this form a few times since arriving he had never really gotten used to seeing this form. However he kept this to himself.

"Welcome back master" the butler said as he bowed.

"Thank you" Matt said with a smile as he walked up to him.

"Master, if I may so bold to ask, what happened outside that required your attention" asked the butler. Matt gave him a warm smile.

"I'm sorry if that caused you any concern. We had a few…unexpected guests that required my attention" said Matt. "Tell me, where is my father?"

"The master had returned to the abbey not long after he left. He said that he was going to talk to Tyki who is in the library."

"Thank you very much" said Matt and he walked past the butler. Matt took only a few steps before stopping. "Tell me, what do you think of this place? Do you like living here" asked Matt.

"I think it is a magnificent abbey, though parts of it are a bit uncomfortable to live in I cannot really complain."

"That's good to hear" said Matt.

"If I may ask sir, what brought this up?"

"No reason" said Matt as he walked away. As Matt walked he could hear the door close and lock.

* * *

><p>Matt made his way into the library where he saw Sheril and Tyki sitting on a couch while Road was doing something with Lily. As Matt walked in he noticed a pleasant look on Tyki's face.<p>

"Well somebody's in a good mood" Matt said to Tyki as he looked over one of the bookshelves for a book.

"I have my reasons to be" said Tyki. "Sheril had just brought me some very good news."

"I know, I was the one who told him that news" said Matt as he pulled out a book and took a seat on another couch across form Tyki and Sheril.

"Well Sheril did mention that you two talked about that" said Tyki. "As well as your little father and son moment" Matt nearly choked on his on breath when Tyki said this.

Hold on, who ever said we were having a moment" Matt said a bit startled by Tyki's statement.

"I did" said Sheril with a smile on his face.

"Father, why would you say such a thing" said Matt. "We weren't having a moment of any kind!"

"Well that's not what I got out of it" said Sheril, Tyki laughed a little as he heard them argue over such a pointless topic.

"Look, I'll admit I said a few things, but that doesn't automatically make it a father son moment" said Matt who was ready to defend that point to the grave.

"Why are you trying to deny it" said Road as she played with Lily.

"I'm not denying anything" said Matt. "There wasn't a father son moment that occurred up there!"  
>"Well even of it wasn't your intention, I still appreciated what you said, even if you didn't mean it" Sheril said warmly. There was a quick pause before Matt spoke.<p>

"I never said I didn't mean what I said" Matt said quietly. "I am grateful that you are my father."

"That means a lot to me" said Sheril.

"Sounds like another moment" Road chirped. Matt then threw the book he held at Road who easily dodged it. "Missed me" teased Road. Matt sighed and went to grab the book that he just tossed past Road. As he walked past he noticed a bag on the ground next to her.

"Road, what's that you got there" asked Matt. Road immediately put a hand on the bag and tried to move it out of sight.

"Nothing" Road said defensively. Matt looked at Raod suspiciously then he looked at Lily.

"Lily, what's in the bag Road has" Matt asked Lily kindly. Lily looked up at Matt, and then looked at Road who tried to silently tell her not to say anything, and then she looked up at Matt again.

"It's candy, Road was giving me some" said Lily in a happy tone. Road slapped her forehead.

"Oh is it now" Matt said in an interested voice. "I don't recall ever giving Road any candy, where could she possibly have gotten it?"

"Tyki gave it to me" Road said innocently.

"No I didn't" said Tyki without looking at them. Road immediately threw a book at Tyki which hit him square in the back of the head. "OW! What was that for" asked Tyki as he rubbed the back of his head.

"That's for ratting me out" Road said in a cold tone.

"No, Lily ratted you out, you just tried to get me involved which I've said countless times I would not do."

"I know Lily did, but I can't get mad at her" said Road.

"Road, where did you get the candy" asked Matt.

"I…found it" said Road, this time she didn't sound as confident.

"You broke into my vault again" said Matt.

"No I didn't" Road insisted.

"Oh really? So if I go down there I won't see a broken vault door" asked Matt.

"It was broken when I got there" said Road.

"Right" said Matt who did not believe her. "Alright give me the bag" said Matt as he held out his hand. Road hesitated but then handed the bag over. Matt looked into the bag and saw that a little over half of the candy had been eaten. Matt sighed then lightly tossed the bag to Road's feet.

"You know, I don't mind giving you candy now and then" said Matt. "Just don't go breaking into my stuff to get it!"

"Fine" Road grumbled. Matt smiled and picked up his book. As he did several candles passed over his head. Matt immediately spun around and Road just sat there looking innocent as Lily laughed.

"You didn't just do what I think you just did" said Matt.

"I have no idea what you are talking about" Road said innocently. "I was just sitting here minding my own business."

"Road, you've thrown enough of your candles at me to know that what just passed over my head were some of your candles."

"Well then you must have been mistaken" said Road. Matt sighed as he walked past her. As he walked past her he hit Road on the top of her head with his book. Road rubbed the top of her head as Lily continued to laugh at their antics. "Hey what was that for" Road asked irritably. Matt took his seat again.

"I have no idea what you are talking about" Matt grinned. "I was just walking by you minding my own business." Everyone could tell that he was mocking Road now.

"I saw you hit me" Road said angrily.

"You must be mistaken" said Matt, a large grin now on his face. Road then lost her temper a bit, she stood up and attacked Matt who was fully anticipating this. Road still however managed to flip Matt over the couch. Tyki, Sheril and Lily watched from the other couch as Road and Matt "fought" each other, laughing the entire time. They could see Matt was enjoying it and after a few minutes so was Road. The fight ended as Road tipped a large bookcase onto Matt, pinning him to the ground. At this point everyone was laughing, even Matt who was being crushed by the large bookcase.

* * *

><p>Three days passed since then and Matt was in his meditation room, looking over some notes and meditating most of the day. Road was once again with Lily, keeping her distracted so Matt could meditate in peace. Tyki was once again reading a book, and Sheril was outside in the grassy courtyard. As Sheril walked through the courtyard he noticed something catch his eye. He looked up at the main courtyard to see an ark gate open.<p>

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 67 coming soon!**

**This was really just a filler chapter and I apologize for it being a bit shorter than recent chapters. However even though it was a filler chapter it was still a lot of fun to write as I do like writing about Road and Matt torturing each other. **

**Well, I figure I should let everyone know that is everything goes according to plan the next chapter will begin the crossover with the character Liza Akuma from the story Noah of Balance. I would highly recommend everyone to read it and catch up with that story as Matt will also be making an appearance in that story! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	67. The Return of a Friend

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

Sheril stared as the ark gate opened in the Courtyard across from the courtyard he stood in. He watched as the ark gate opened and almost just as fast closed. He stood there for a moment, could the gate have opened to the wrong area? Sheril thought about this for a moment but then decided to see if someone had in fact arrived here. He made his way into the main abbey then opened one of the large doors to the courtyard. What he saw surprised him. There standing on the courtyard was a woman in her early 20's. She stood 5ft 5in (168cm) and was wearing skinny black pants, a purple corset and a long black coat. She had green eyes, but what stood out even more was her long white hair and her 2 dark black arms with purple stigmata on her hands, and in the center of her chest just below the neck was a mark that was a mix of a cross and stigmata. The woman looked around confused, not noticing that the door to the abbey had opened.

"Liza" Sheril said in a happy voice as he quickly walked out to her. Liza looked at Sheril with a bit of surprise but then gave a warm smile.

"Sheril, it's good to see you" Liza said warmly. "Where exactly am I" she asked a bit confused. "I was told that the gate led back to your home but this is obviously not the mansion." Sheril finally reached her.

"Yes well the mansion is under a bit of…remodeling" Sheril said, choosing his words carefully. "For now we're living here at the monastery fortress of Mont Saint Michel."

"Ok…" Liza said hesitantly. "So instead of living on the ark while your house was remodeled you decided to live in this place?"

"Well it was Matt's idea" Sheril smiled as he rubbed the back of his head. "After all this is his 'second home' of sorts."

"Wait, did the Earl give him this" Liza asked in disbelief.

"Not exactly, the Earl actually asked him to destroy it, but for some reason or another he decided not to and claimed it for himself."

"Unbelievable" said Liza as she stared at the abbey's tower. "I've never known Matt do disobey the Earl."

"Yes, it was a surprise to us as well" smiled Sheril. "However, I must admit he has an interesting taste. But if you want to know why he did it you're going to have to ask him yourself."

"That's fine, where is he?"

"Probably meditating" said Sheril. "However let me show you to your room and let you get settled down."

"I have my own room" asked Liza, a bit surprised.

"Something like that" said Sheril. "There was a room prepared for Wisely but as I'm sure you know he was killed a while ago."

"I'm aware, how is he handling it" Liza asked in a bit of a worried tone.

"He was a bit shaky at first but he's come to terms with it I believe. Road helped him a lot through that time though."

"That's good to hear" Liza smiled.

"But enough of this let's get you inside" Sheril said in a happier tone. Sheril then grabbed Liza's one suitcase that she brought with her and led her into the abbey.

* * *

><p>Sheril led Liza deep into the abbey and found the room that was meant for Wisely. Most of the decorations were removed after Wisely's death but all the basic furniture was there. There was also a single window looking out into the bay.<p>

"Sorry it isn't much right now" said Sheril as he placed Liza's suitcase on the bed. "We'll get some more decorations as soon as possible."

"Take your time" said Liza. "So where is everyone else staying?"

"We are all in the same general area. But I'll show you where to go later, this place can be a bit confusing to navigate. I don't even know my way around most of this place, and that's why we're going to find him now. He can give you a proper tour." Sheril led Liza out of the room.

"So where is again? In his room?"

"No he has his own special room for that and that's where we're going, it's very close to here." They were about to start walking when the ground shook a little. Sheril hesitated a bit. "Actually, he's not going to be there" said Sheril.

"Where is he then?"

"I'll show you" said Sheril and he led Liza down the hallway.

* * *

><p>The two travelled deep into the bowels of the abbey when they reached a large room with a massive vault door which was cracked open a bit.<p>

"What is this place" asked Liza.

"Matt's vault" said Sheril. "He keeps a lot of things in there though nobody is really allowed in for some reason. Or more specifically Road isn't allowed in."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." Then they could hear the sound of some yelling coming from inside the vault as well as some crashing noises. After a moment of listening to the sounds of conflict there was a quick scream.

"Son of a bitch" yelled a voice that sounded like Matt. The sound of conflict then continued for a minute more before it was quiet. Then they could hear the voice that screamed getting closer, he sounded somewhat upset.

"Damn it Road! How many times have I told you that you are not allowed in here" said Matt as he dragged Road by the collar.

"I don't know" said Road as she held a bag in her hand.

"If you wanted candy all you have to do is ask and I'll go get some."

"You take too long" Road grumbled.

"It's called patience" Matt said annoyed. "For once use it!"

"No guarantees" grinned Road as they left the vault. Matt saw Sheril standing there.

"Father, what are you doing here" asked Matt then he noticed Liza. "Liza" said Matt, he was surprised to see her here, despite the fact that he knew that she was coming.

"Hey Matt, having fun" Liza said with a smile.

"Not really, Road has yet to learn the meaning of 'do not enter'" said Matt as he shot a quick glare at Road.

"Hey, I know what it means" Road complained. "I just chose not to listen to it."

"You've made that very obvious" said Matt as used his earth manipulation to close the large vault door behind him. "Speaking of that, how are you getting into the vault?"

"Not telling" Road teased as Matt released her. Road got up and skipped over to Liza. "It's good to see you Liza" Road said happily.

"Same here Road" Liza smiled then she looked at Matt. "Hey Matt are you going to be alright" asked Liza as she pointed to Matt's right shoulder.

Matt looked at his shoulder and saw one of Road's candles sticking in his shoulder. "Huh, I thought I pulled out the candle she hit me with" said Matt as he pulled out the candle and threw it on the ground. "Guess there was 2. But to answer your question Liza, yeah I'll be fine."

"I see that you two are getting along just great" Liza laughed.

"Yeah, yeah we're doing great. But they would be better if Road would stop breaking into my stuff" Matt shot another glare at Road who stuck her tongue at him. "Anyways Liza, when did you get here?"

"Just a little while ago" said Liza. "Sheril was kind enough to show me to my room."

Matt looked at Sheril, "You're using Wisely's room?"

"Yes" said Sheril. "I didn't see it as a problem."

"It isn't, I'll have some akuma go out and buy some decorations or something for her."

"Why don't you let me handle it" said Sheril remembering how much Matt spent the last time he decorated the abbey.

"Fine" scowled Matt. "So Liza, have you seen Tyki yet" Matt asked with a pleasant tone.

"Not yet."

"We can probably find him in the library" said Matt. "He barely leaves that place." Matt, Road, Sheril and Liza then left the vault room and went to the library.

* * *

><p>Matt was the first to enter the library and there sitting on the couch, as predicted, was Tyki, who was reading a book.<p>

"Hey Tyki we have a guest" Matt said with a smile.

"Is this someone I have to meet" asked Tyki. "Because I'm sort of in the middle of reading a good book."

"Is that any way to treat me" asked Liza. Tyki looked up and saw Liza. His jaw dropped a little and the book slid out of his hand and to the ground.

"L-Liza, I'm sorry I didn't realize it was you."

"You're in trouble now Tyki" grinned Road and Matt laughed with her.

"It's been a while and you don't even want to see me" Liza teased though she acted upset.

"No-no not at all I just didn't know you were arriving today" Tyki stammered. Liza glared at him as she walked up to Tyki and punched him in the shoulder before smiling.

"There I feel better now" said Liza. Tyki rubbed his shoulder a bit but then smiled at Liza.

"I missed you" Tyki said warmly.

"I missed you two" Liza smiled. Matt groaned and shook his head.

"Yes, yes you two missed each other. Can we not do this" asked Matt, interrupting Tyki and Liza before they could say anything else. "You can get reacquaint with each other during dinner." Liza looked at Matt.

"Fine" Liza sighed. She looked back at Tyki and smiled as Tyki smiled back as he stood up. The Noahs then left the room to head to the dining room for dinner.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 68 coming soon!**

**Well here it is the first chapter of the crossover with Liza Akuma from the story Noah of Balance. I truly hoped you enjoyed it. If you're wondering why Liza knows Matt so well it's because they know each other in the story (obviously), but do not worry, I will explain it better in the next chapter. Or go to my page and read up on Matt's relations with the other characters in the story, which will give you a quick summary. As you may expect I do not own the character Liza Akuma, she is owned by SpiderWraith (who you should go and read her stories) and I thank her so much for letting me do this. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Anyways with that being said today is the last day for the poll on my page dealing with the relationship between Road and Matt so please if you haven't voted yet please go and do that. I will close the poll at midnight eastern standard time and will announce the results in the next chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	68. Change

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

Everyone sat down in the dining hall for dinner that was already laid out for them. Sheril sat at the head of the table while Tyki and Liza sat on one side of the table and Road and Matt sat across from them. There was more food than usual on the large table because Liza had arrived. As they began to eat Matt watched in disbelief as Liza devoured her food. As she ate she looked up and saw that Matt was staring at her.

"What" asked Liza, confused about why Matt was staring at her.

"It's nothing" said Matt as he began to eat his food. "I had just forgotten how much you ate. I'm not sure if I'd like to be an innocence wielder."

"It's not all that bad" said Liza. "I mean if anything the price of having parasite type innocence could be worse, so I'm grateful that all I have to do is eat some more than the average person."

"That's a lot more than 'a bit'" Matt pointed out.

"He has a point Liza" said Tyki.

"Oh come on why must you side with him on this" Liza asked in disbelief that Tyki didn't side with her.

"I never said it was a bad thing" Tyki grinned.

"Oh" said Liza a bit embarrassed.

"To be honest though I don't think I would like being a parasite type innocence in my arm" said Matt, he chose not to mention the innocence in his arm as Liza hadn't noticed it because Matt's left arm was covered his sleeve and he was wearing gloves.

"Why would you say that" asked Liza.

"Because he has" said Road who was interrupted by her chair tipping over and her falling to the ground. Everyone stared with wide eyes at where Road once sat then all looked at Matt who continued to calmly eat his food. However, Matt didn't have long before Road grabbed Matt's chair legs and pulled the chair out causing Matt to fall to hit his head on the table with a loud thud then continue to fall to the ground. Road then stood up, brushed herself off, picked her chair up, sat down and began to eat. Now jaws were dropped as the rest stared at Road.

"Uhm, Matt are you alright down there" asked Liza.

"He's fine" said Sheril as he regained composure and began to eat again. Liza looked at Matt who stood up after another moment. He didn't look at anyone as he sat back down on his chair.

"What was that about" asked Liza.

"What was what about" Matt asked Liza.

"That whole little scene you and Road just did."

"I have no idea what you're talking about" said Matt. He didn't want to talk about his cursed arm.

"Yes you do" insisted Liza.

"Oh Matt just tell her already" said Tyki but as soon as he said it his chair fell over. Liza looked down and saw that some stones had risen from the ground and pushed the chair over; meaning Matt was responsible.

"I don't want to talk about it" said Matt as he continued to eat as if nothing happened, Road laughed at Tyki as he stood up. "At least not at the dinner table."

"What's going on" asked Liza. Tyki sighed as he sat down.

"Matt will tell you sometime" said Tyki. "Apparently though he wants to act like a child right now and not talk about it."

"Hey I'm not acting like a child" whined Matt.

"You know, you are such a kid" giggled Liza. "Just like I remembered you to be."

"If I recall Liza, I'm older than you" said Matt.

"Sorry, I forget sometimes. But you still look like a kid though."

"I'm aware, you don't need to remind me" said Matt as he finished his food. "Anyways, that's it for me today. I'm going to head back to my room for a bit to make sure Lily gets some food, she's been sleeping all day." Matt then left the room. As he walked out though Liza could have sworn Matt's left wrist was black. She thought about it for a moment then remembered what Matt just said.

"Wait, who's Lily? And why is she in Matt's room?"

"Lily is an akuma Matt created over a year ago" said Sheril. "She stays in Matt's room a lot because that's where she sleeps. She acts like a mere child most of the time and has the appearance of a young child."

"I see, I didn't know" said Liza.

"Actually, none of us knew until recently" said Tyki and Liza looked at him in surprise. "Matt kept her a secret during that time."

"Interesting" said Liza.

"He has his reasons" said Sheril. "Oh I should warn you that Lily is really shy so she may run away from you and hide behind Matt."

"Thanks for the warning" said Liza as she continued to eat.

* * *

><p>The next morning Liza was wandering around the abbey. It was a cool morning as the temperature was not very high, though high enough to allow light clothing. Liza opened a door and when she did she was net with a blast of cold air. For a moment she thought she was outside but when she looked around she saw that the area was just unfurnished and so the the outside air kept the room cool. She then noticed that the room was very large and saw that there was a circle of pillars in the center of the room. She walked in and continued to look around.<p>

"What are you doing" Matt asked which startled Liza. Liza spun around and saw that Matt was sitting on the stone floor in a meditating position with his shirt off.

"I'm sorry" said Liza. "I didn't know you were meditating." Matt opened his eyes and left his meditating position.

"It's fine, I was just finishing up anyways" Matt said with a smile.

"That's good. Wait why is your shirt off?"

"The cool air feels good on my skin" said Matt as he stretched. That was when Liza finally noticed Matt's left arm. It was completely black with a single red cross on his arm.

"Matt what happened to your arm" Liza asked, concerned.

"Innocence was forced into my arm after a fight with one of the exorcist generals" said Matt. "It caused a lot of problems but now it's sealed away. It's been nothing but a burden since I got it but now my arm can't be damaged."

"That's interesting" said Liza then she noticed all the scars on Matt's body as he stood up and walked past her to grab his shirt.

"What happened to you" asked Liza. "The last time we were together you only had a single scar on your chest, now look at you." Matt laughed a little.

"You're one to talk" said Matt. "You left here with no scars yet I can clearly see one there on your chest in the same area as mine. And I can only assume you have more scars that I can't see."

"That's true but you still have more" Liza smiled.

"Perhaps but I'm not going to go counting" said Matt as he put his shirt on.

"You haven't changed a bit" grinned Liza. "Though we are more similar now thanks to the scars."

"Yeah well I could say the same for you" said Matt as he turned to face her. "But we were already similar Liza; we were both born Noah and awakened later on."

"True."

"So why are you down here Liza" asked Matt now remembering he was wondering why she was here.

"I was just exploring the abbey. Hey Matt, Sheril said the mansion was being remodeled. Why is that?" Matt's expression saddened a little.

"The Black Order attacked the mansion and completely destroyed it" said Matt. "We are here because we were forced out of our home."

"I'm sorry, I should've been there" said Liza, a bit upset that she asked now.

"No, you were busy dealing with your own mission" Matt said with a smile, masking any sadness that he once showed. "And besides in the end we won so that's important."

"I guess so. So much has happened since I left."

"Yeah but it's not so bad" Matt said with a smile. The two talked a bit more, mostly reminiscing about their past and making fun of the other a little. After a few minutes though Matt heard the door open and saw Sheril enter.

"Father, what's up" asked Matt, looking past Liza.

"I'm sorry am I interrupting anything" asked Sheril, realizing that Liza and Matt were talking.

"Not at all" Matt said with a smile. "Tell me Father, why are you here?"

"Well the Earl just contacted me" said the Earl. "There's a mission that he needs you to complete immediately."

"Really, did he say what the mission was?"

"Yes, apparently there is a fairly large force of exorcists and finders on the move. They are hiding out in a fortified city and he wants you to go there and destroy everyone and everything there."

"Sounds like fun" said Matt.

"Come with me" said Sheril. "I'll explain everything in my office." With that said Sheril left the room. Matt followed shortly after him and Liza, not knowing what to do, followed Matt.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 69 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Again, I do not own the character Liza Akuma, she belongs to SpiderWraith who was kind enough to allow me to add the character to my story. If you haven't read any of her stories, I would highly recommend you do so, especially her current story Noah of Balance (where Matt will be making an appearance soon). **

**So as promised the poll about Road and Matt's relationship is now closed. And the results are this: Road and Matt will not be in a relationship. Thank you all who voted! Now the poll was very close in the end so maybe after a while I may return to this topic, but for now Road and Matt will keep the brother sister relationship they have now. Anyways that's it for today. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Until next time!**


	69. Journey to Monteriggioni

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

Matt and Liza followed Sheril into his office. As Sheril walked behind his desk he pulled out a map and laid it out across the desk. Matt glanced down at the map.

"We're going to Italy" asked Matt.

"That is correct" said Sheril. "The Earl has discovered a relatively important outpost in a small fortified town of Monteriggioni" Sheril pointed to a spot on the map.

"How important is it" asked Liza, curious to hear what Matt's mission would be.

"Upon investigation the town has been shown to be an avid supporter of the Black Order and apparently they have been using it as a safe haven of sorts for a very long time now. Recently though the Earl has been sending out akuma to find these havens to flush out Black Order supporters and hiding exorcists. So far we have only found a few."

"So we're now hunting down safe houses" Matt asked. "I thought the Earl was using my plan."

"He is" Sheril reassured Matt. "After the success of your mission he will send others on these missions so that you can be free for other missions such as this."

"I understand" said Matt a bit upset that he was no longer participating in his own plan. Sheril saw this.

"Do not worry Matt. The Earl will have you go on more of those missions I'm sure but right now he needs this haven removed. The Earl was very specific that you are to kill everyone there as they are all supporters of the Black Order."

"I see" said Matt. "Sheril if it's alright with you could I bring someone with me" asked Matt.

"I don't see why that would be a problem" said Sheril. "Who did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking that I would like Liza to come with me" Matt said with a grin as he looked at Liza. "Of course only if she wants to."

Sheril looked at Liza. "Liza, would you like to go on this mission? I know you have only just returned from a very long mission and have earned a break."

"No that's fine" smiled Liza. "The mission sounds interesting, plus it's been a while since I've been on a mission with Matt so it would be nice to do that again."

"Very well then" said Sheril. "Then you will accompany Matt on his mission."

"Well this is going to be fun" Matt said with an excited look on his face. "Well if that's it then I think we should be going" said Matt.

"One more thing" said Sheril. Matt looked at him with a curious look. "The Earl also wanted me to tell you that you are not allowed to keep this place, destroy everything inside the walls." Matt smiled.

"That won't be a problem, I'm very happy with this place. I'm not looking for another." Matt was about to leave the room with Liza when Matt remembered something. "Oh by the way father, make sure Road doesn't find out about this. She may get upset that I didn't bring her along to 'play with the exorcists'" Matt said, saying what he knew Road would say.

"I can't guarantee she won't find out" said Sheril.

"Well try at the very least." Sheril then nodded at Matt and he and Liza left the room.

* * *

><p>Before leaving Matt returned to his room. Matt scanned the room as if he was expecting something.<p>

"Huh, could've sworn she was here" Matt said to himself but Liza overheard him.

"Who did you think would be here" asked Liza.

"Lily" said Matt. "I assume the others have already told you about her?"

"They have."

"Good then I don't have to explain, it's kind of hard for me to explain anyways" said Matt as he walked over to his closet and pulled out a long, black, sleeveless coat and put it on. "She must be with Road. I'll make sure to introduce you to her after the mission."

"That's fine. I look forward to meeting her" Liza said with a smile. "Though I did hear she was shy."

"You have no idea" said Matt as he walked past Liza and the two left the room.

* * *

><p>The two went through the ark gate and found themselves in the middle of a large flat stretch of land. Matt looked around for a moment then in the distance a few miles (kilometers) from where they were he saw a walled town on top of very small and flat mountain. Even though the mountain was small it seemed to tower over the surrounding landscape.<p>

"This isn't good" Matt said to Liza who looked at him in confusion.

"What are you talking about" asked Liza.

"Look" said Matt pointing to the towers extending from the walled town. "If this place is really a Black Order hideout, or haven, whatever Father called it. Then I'm sure that those towers have people keeping watch in them."

"So what you're saying is that they may have seen us arrive?"

"Exactly" said Matt. "Although the gate we used wasn't very big so there is a good chance they didn't notice us."

"Well there's only one way to find out" Liza grinned, Matt grinned back.

"Knock on their front door and see what happens?"

"Exactly" grinned Liza. Matt laughed a little.

"This is what I've missed about our missions" Matt smiled. "However, that's never going to happen unless we get moving." With that said the two began to walk along the road that led to the town.

"So what's going to be the plan of attack" asked Liza as they walked.

"Well you said it perfectly; we're going to see if they've noticed us coming. If they have then we just attack immediately. If they haven't noticed us, let's see if we can't get inside before we begin the attack. As usual, the exorcists will be the top priority early on. Kill them as fast as you can. But don't forget about the finders."

"Why do we need to worry about them" asked Liza. "They aren't strong at all."

"No they aren't" Matt admitted. "But those new artificial innocence weapons that they carry hurt like hell either way."

"Oh yeah, I thought I heard something about that" said Liza.

"Yeah, we don't know how they pulled it off. All we know is that now finders can kill akuma as well so they are a bit more dangerous than before. After we deal with the exorcists and finders we will deal with the citizens here. Though if you see them trying to flee the city don't hesitate."

"I understand" said Liza. As they approached the town they noticed that the gate to the town was still raised and there appeared to be no sign of alarm as people were seen entering and exiting the entrance.

"Well it looks like things have worked out in our favor so far" Matt smiled.

"So it would seem" said Liza.

"Hopefully no one here will recognize us in our white form. Otherwise we won't stay hidden for long." As they entered the town they looked around and as expected the interior of the town was crawling with finders and there were a few exorcists that could be seen amongst the finders and citizens. As they walked through the town both Matt and Liza did their best to avoid getting any suspicion. In order to do that they ducked into an alleyway near the plaza at the end of the town. Matt leaned against the wall as they waited around before they attacked.

"Hey Liza, I was thinking about our first mission together" said Matt.

"Yeah what about it" asked Liza.

"Well do you remember that little game that we played during the mission?"

"I don't really recall it" admitted Liza.

"Oh it was a simple game" said Matt. "See who can kill the most people. I don't think I have to explain the rules for that."

"No, the name is fairly self-explanatory" Liza said rolling her eyes.

"Oh come on let's do it again, for old times' sake" pleaded Matt.

"Fine" said Liza, Matt then gave her a big smile.

"Well there are plenty of them for the taking, this should prove to be fun" Matt said with a grin.

"So when do we start" asked Liza. Matt thought about it for a moment then saw a finder standing at the end of the alleyway. Matt snuck up behind the finder and broke his neck and dragged him into the alley. Matt tossed the body to the ground.

"I'm not sure" said Matt as he walked to the other end of the alleyway and grabbed another passing finder and pulled him into the alleyway. As Matt dragged the finder he turned his arm into a sword and slit the finder's throat.

This continued for a few minutes until there was a small pile of finders surrounding Liza, who was now getting annoyed that Matt hadn't answered her yet.

"Matt, when are we starting" Liza asked, a bit annoyed as Matt dropped yet another body on the ground. Matt looked up at her with a confused look.

"What are you talking about Liza? We started a few minutes ago" Matt's confused look then turned into a large grin. Liza looked at Matt in disbelief.

"Hold on a moment" protested Liza. "You never said when to start!"

"I think it was very obvious when I killed the first finder" said Matt as he kept that evil looking grin. "Oh by the way you might want to get started already as I am now 6 kills ahead of you." Liza shook her head a bit as she went into her Noah form and charged out of the alleyway. Matt grinned as he himself went into his Noah form and used a stone pillar to raise him to the top of the roof where he would officially start his attack.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 70 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter because I really enjoyed writing it :D. As usual Liza Akuma belongs to SpiderWraith and I am using the character with her permission. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**I would also like to announce that there is a new poll on my page. This time around I am looking to see who you would like to see Matt fight in an upcoming major battle. I will keep this one up for a bit so please go to my page and vote! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time**!


	70. Battle of Monteriggioni

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

Matt stepped off of the stone pillar and stepped onto the roof of one of the buildings. As he looked down he saw Liza beginning her attack. As he watched Majnun appeared next to Matt.

"I see that Liza has returned" Majnun said with a grin.

"Haven't you been paying attention at all the last 2 days" asked Matt, his tone a bit harsh.

"Not particularly" said Majnun, ignoring Matt's tone of voice.

"And let me guess, I assume you won't change that?"

"You guessed correctly" said Majnun. "I have to admit, she is an interesting one. After all, being a Noah and being able to use innocence is certainly unique to her. But that would make sense given the fact that she is the Noah of Balance."

"I agree" said Matt. "It's a dangerous combination."

* * *

><p>Liza ran out of the alleyway, as she did she activated the innocence in her arms. Her arms turned into large claws and dark angelic-like wings sprouted from her back. She then lunged at the first person to cross her path. The finder barely caught a glimpse of her before she pierced his heart with one of her claws. As the finder slumped to the ground the surrounding people took immediate notice and panic immediately ensued. Many of the finders were unarmed and began to flee to find weapons to use while those who were armed began to attack Liza. The citizens began to flee as well and began calling out for help. Soon after, an alarm began to sound off. As Liza was surrounded she had several ribbons come out from underneath her coat and strike at several finders, killing them instantly. Liza then used the opening to attack an approaching exorcist.<p>

Matt was sitting on top of the building watching Liza fight. He was impressed with her abilities. After a moment, he stood up and began to walk away. Majnun looked at Matt curiously.

"What, you're not going to help her" Majnun asked.

"She can handle herself for now" said Matt. "Right now though, I need to make sure that nobody can leave this town." Matt then began to run across the rooftops, heading towards the entrance to the town. Majnun shook his head then disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Matt reached the end of the buildings and leapt off. As he looked down he saw an exorcist running in his direction. Matt turned his right arm into a sword as he landed on the ground where he immediately spun around and cut the exorcist's throat, then kicked him to the ground. Matt looked at the entrance where people were beginning to run out of. Matt raised his hand at the top of the entrance and closed his hand into a fist. As he did the entrance began to crack violently then collapse to the ground, crushing several people who were trying to escape.

"There we go, now nobody can leave" Matt grinned. As he did however he was hit in the back of the head which caused Matt to fall to the ground. Matt rolled over onto his back to see an exorcist who carried a long sword. The exorcist went for the killing blow but Matt managed to roll out of the way of the attack. As he finished rolling in the same motion he began to get up. He kicked the exorcist in the back of the knee causing him to fall to the ground. Matt finally stood up and he raised his arm, which was back to normal, and shot a stone spike from his hand which hit the exorcist in the back of the head. As Matt looked at the corpse he was hit by another object, though this time it only made him stumble forward a bit. He turned around to see a few civilians throwing objects at him. Matt shook his head but then a brick hit him in the head which infuriated him. He simply looked at the people and slammed his foot to the ground. Once he did several hands grabbed on to the people and crushed them. Matt then heard Majnun laughing at him.

"Is something funny" Matt asked in annoyance.

"Yeah, you are" laughed Majnun. "I can't believe you let yourself get hit in the head by a mere human."

"Yeah, yeah, keep laughing" Matt said coldly as he killed an attacking finder. Eventually after a few minutes of fighting Matt was surrounded. He looked at all the finders that now encircled him with nothing more than a grin on his face.

* * *

><p>At the same time Liza began creating orbs and shooting them at people. Many of them hit and instantly killed them while other missed and caused massive damage to the surrounding area. She used her ribbons to hold people down as she finished them off with her orbs and anyone who got to close were killed by her claws. She saw an exorcist running towards her and she formed an orb and launched it at the exorcist. The exorcist however was able to dodge the attack and the orb hit a building which caused the front of the building to collapse. However, even though she had killed a great number of people, more and more continued to attack her.<p>

"Damn it" Liza said to herself. "How many people are in this damn city?" She then used her razor sharp wings to cut the head off of a finder. "I wonder if Matt's having this much trouble" she asked herself. As she did though she heard the sound of the entrance collapsing. "Guess not."

* * *

><p>"So what are you going to do" asked Majnun. "You appear to be surrounded."<p>

"Simple" said Matt and suddenly, out of the walls and ground, large stone soldiers began to appear. All of them were armed with stone weapons as well. The soldiers began to attack the finders and exorcists which caused a large panic among those there. Matt used the distraction to escape, but not before taking out a handful of finders.

As Matt ran an arrow shot him in the shoulder. The force of the shot knocked him onto his back. Matt pulled the arrow out as he stood back up. He looked for signs of an attacker but did not see any. At the same time though another arrow grazed his cheek. He looked up to see someone on top of one of the towers with a bow and arrow. Matt created a pillar that brought him to the top of the wall next to the tower. As he leapt off he landed on top of a town guard and stabbed him in the heart. He then spun in a circle and threw the body off of the wall. Matt looked at the tower for a moment. He saw the archer looking over, about ready to shot another arrow at Matt. However, before he could get the shot, off a stray orb from Liza hit the tower causing it to collapse. Matt leapt out of the collapsing tower's way so he wouldn't be crushed.

"Damn it Liza, what the hell are you doing down there" Matt asked himself as he looked down into the town.

* * *

><p>Liza was on the ground. During a prolonged fight with one of the exorcists she was tripped up by another finder. Because she was just about to shoot an orb at the exorcist, the orb went flying off. She saw though that it did manage to hit a tower though. Liza was quick to stand back up as she formed a quick shield to block the attack. However the shield wasn't very strong so she only had enough time to get back up before the shield broke. The exorcist began to attack her again but got to close and Liza finished him off by cutting him in half. It was at this moment when she saw dozens of stone soldiers running through the town. Many of them were destroyed by the exorcists but at the same time many were also being killed by the stone soldiers.<p>

"Looks like things are almost finished here" said Liza as her attention was taken by another exorcist. She formed an orb and was in the middle of firing it at him when the exorcist pushed her arm out of the way and the orb went flying off.

At the same moment Matt was clearing off a section of the wall when an exorcist grabbed him. Matt couldn't break free from his grip; however Liza's orb struck the wall causing it to collapse with Matt and the exorcist on it. As they fell Matt managed to break free and was on top as they hit the ground. The rubble broke the exorcist's back and Matt finished him off.

"Not again" Matt complained as he decided to go to Liza. He didn't want that happening to him again. Matt reached the plaza where he saw Liza fighting off a few straggling survivors. As he did he saw a finder sneaking up on her. Matt immediately rushed at the finder and took him out with a stone spike that came up from the ground.

Liza turned around when she heard the noise to see the finder dead. She looked over and saw Matt running towards her. He was covered in dust and was bleeding in a few spots.

"Matt, you look a mess" grinned Liza.

"No thanks to you" said Matt as he reached her. "Your stupid orbs kept getting in my way."

"Sorry" said Liza.

"It's fine, I'm not dead so I can forgive you" grinned Matt. The two then watched as the last of the survivors were killed by the stone soldiers. Once the last one was dead the soldiers crumbled away.

"Well that was fun" said Liza. "How many did you end up killing?"

"Excluding the soldiers, I killed 36 by myself, with however I have no idea but you might want to double that count."

"Well I killed 40 so it looks like I win" smiled Liza.

"Don't be too hasty" said Matt. "Don't forget my stone soldiers killed plenty as well so in the end I think I won."

"But you don't know how many they killed so you can't say that" Liza protested. As they argued over that a single surviving exorcist was sneaking up on them. He held his innocence, which was a double-barreled shotgun, and aimed it at Liza's back when he got close enough. As he pulled the trigger though Matt noticed.

"Liza watch out" yelled Matt as he moved in between her and the exorcist. The gun fired at the same moment and hit Matt who was blown back a bit and landed on the ground. Liza immediately killed the exorcist will one of her orbs then immediately went to Matt's aid as he laid on the ground.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 71 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter. As usual, the character Liza Akuma is owned by SpiderWraith, who has given me permission to use her in my story. All of the abilities she used are used in her story Noah of Balance, which I would highly recommend.**

**As mention yesterday, there is a new poll up asking about who you would like to see Matt fight in an upcoming major battle. I would highly recommend you go to my page and vote for your top 2 choices. Anyways let me know what you thought of the chapter. That's it for today. Until next time!**


	71. Wounded

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

"Matt are you alright" yelled Liza as she ran up to Matt who was lying on the ground, a small pool of blood beginning to form next to Matt. She kneeled next to Matt and turned him over to see the damage. She gasped a little at what she saw. His entire right shoulder and chest, as well has part of his neck, were torn up and bleeding profusely. Despite this however, Matt managed to stay conscious. Liza was beginning to panic. She had used up most of her healing abilities during the fight and didn't have enough strength to heal him.

"Matt I'm so sorry, I should've been paying attention" said Liza as she applied some pressure to his neck, hoping to slow some of the bleeding. Matt looked at her, in his eyes he showed no fear over his injuries despite the great pain he was feeling.

"It's alright" Matt managed to say. "It's just a little scratch, I'll be fine." As he said this he winced in pain.

"What am I supposed to do" Liza asked herself. "I can't help him here." As she looked over Matt, Road's door rose from the ground and opened. Road stepped outside and looked around. After quickly taking in the destruction she saw Liza hunched over, on her knees.

"Hey Liza, where's Matt" asked Road as she began to walk up to her. "He's in big trouble for not taking me with him on his mission." Liza looked up and turned her head towards Road.

"Road, thank goodness you're here" Liza said in a rush. "I need help right now." Road could see the panic in her eyes and as she approached Liza she could see why. She immediately ran the rest of the way and stood over Liza.

"What the hell happened here" Road asked as she looked in horror at Matt's current condition.

"He took a direct blow from an exorcist who we had missed during the fight" said Liza.

"Right, wait here just a minute I'll go get Tyki and Sheril here to help out." Road ran back through her door but did not close it.

* * *

><p>Road ran out of her door and was greeted by Sheril and Tyki who were both sitting in chairs in Sheril's office. Sheril looked up and saw the worry in her eyes.<p>

"Road, what's wrong" asked Sheril.

"It's Matt" said Road and that's all it took and Tyki and Sheril were both standing up and hurrying to Road's door. After a minute, Sheril and Tyki came out of the door with Liza right behind them. Tyki carried Matt to a medical room in the abbey that was created for such an occasion. As they entered there were a doctor and a few nurses on stand-by there. Matt was placed down on an operating table and Liza and Road were told to leave the room. They waited outside for nearly 15 minutes before Sheril walked out of the room, his clothes had some blood on it. Liza, who was leaning against the wall looked at Sheril.

"How is he" asked Liza.

"It's hard to say right now" said Sheril. "The wound is pretty big, but for the most part his injuries don't seem life threatening, though if we don't get them closed up soon it will become life threatening."

"So is he going to be alright" Road asked, worried for Matt.

"We'll know for certain soon enough" said Sheril. "I just needed to step out for a moment to let you know how it's going in there and to ask Liza a question."

"What is it you wanted to ask" asked Liza.

"It's about Matt; his wound is very spread out, what was he hit by?"

"Uhm, I believe he was shot by a shotgun that was being carried by an exorcist" said Liza, trying to remember back. "It happened all so fast, but I definitely believe it was a shotgun."

"Well that makes sense, given the wound" Sheril said to himself. "Thank you for letting me know; no if you'll excuse me I have to get back in." Sheril then reentered the room.

About a half an hour passed and this time Tyki exited the room, he had more blood on him then Sheril did.

"Well" asked Road.

"The wounds turned out to be less severe than originally thought" Tyki smiled. "It looks like he lost a fair amount of blood, but other than that he will be just fine."

"That's a relief" said Liza as she smiled. "Can we see him?"

"Not at the moment. We are finishing up closing the last of his wounds and then we will bring him back to his room where he will have to rest for a little bit."

"If you want, I can use my healing abilities to speed the process up" Liza offered, she had regained a little strength since she returned and could probably heal Matt a little bit.

"That won't be necessary" Tyki smiled. "Need you forget, Matt is strong. He will be back to normal I believe after a day or 2; though that may just be him being stubborn." Tyki looked at Road, who stilled looked concerned. "Hey Road, go find Lily, play with her for a bit. I'm sure she would enjoy that" said Tyki. Road nodded and left the area. Tyki then looked at Liza who had a guilty and sad look on her face. "Liza, what's wrong?"

"I should have known the exorcist was there, or at the very least I should have put a shield up to stop the attack. Matt got hurt because of me" Liza said, her voice filled with guilt. Tyki placed an arm around her.

"You shouldn't put so much blame on yourself" said Tyki. "Remember, Matt has a habit of doing reckless things. And over the last few years it has become very clear that if it means protecting those he cares about, Matt is more than willing to get hurt so that those he cares for do not."

"But still, I could've prevented it with a shield but I froze."

"I doubt he'll think of it that way. He's more than happy to take a bullet for us, and in this case I mean that literally. I've seen him do far more foolish things even when he was weaker where he should have died but didn't. Even after those moments, Matt has never once regretted his decision to get hurt."

"I just can't help but feel bad though." Tyki laughed a little. Liza looked up at Tyki with a confused look.

"Sorry, it's just you sound a lot like what Matt sounded like after Wisely's death. Look, you may feel bad now, but just know that he went in front of that attack because he chose to do so. He chose to protect you over his own safety. And for that I don't see a reason to feel guilty." Tyki looked at Liza who still had a guilty look on her face. "Liza, why don't you get some rest. It's been a long day for you, and some sleep will do you good" Tyki smiled.

"Alright" Liza said reluctantly.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. Just get some rest" said Tyki and Liza left for her room. Tyki then went back into the medical room to help them move Matt back to his room. As he entered he noticed that Matt was conscious, though just barely. Tyki walked up to him and looked at Matt.

"Tyki, how is Liza holding up" Matt asked weakly.

"She's blaming herself for your injury. But I told her to get some rest" said Tyki.

"Man, I'm going to have to talk to her won't I?"

"Most likely, I tried, but I'm not sure how effective it was" said Tyki.

"I see, well thanks anyways. I hope you were able to cheer her up" Matt smiled.

"I'll go check on her later and see how she's doing. But as I told Liza, you need to get some rest Matt."

"Yeah, I guess you're right" Matt smiled then he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 72 coming soon!  
>Well I certainly hope you enjoyed the chapter! As usual, Liza Akuma is owned by SpiderWraith, who has given me permission to use the character in my story. IF you haven't read any of her stories I would highly recommend that you do so. <strong>

**So a quick update on the poll, I will keep the poll up for the week (hopefully) or until I get enough votes. This poll is for your benefit as it will tell me who you want to see Matt fight, so I would highly recommend that you go and vote! Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time!**


	72. Recovery

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just Matt and Lily**

Matt woke up the next day to find himself in his room. Light shined brightly through the window in his room which made Matt squint his eyes. As his eyes adjusted to the light he saw Road sitting on the edge of his bed with Lily, who was in her dragon form, curled up on her lap. His entire right side felt numb, he hated the feeling, or lack thereof. As Matt leaned himself up Road looked over to Matt and smiled.

"Morning" said Road.

"It's awfully bright for it to be morning don't you think" said Matt as he rubbed his eyes.

"Well it's past noon but it might as well be morning" said Road, a bit irritated that Matt completely ignored her greeting.

"Well either way thanks" said Matt. "By the way, what are you doing in my room?"

"I came here to drop Lily off in your room. It was her request. She fell asleep on the way over and seeing as I had nowhere to go I decided to sit down."

"I see" said Matt, he knew Road was withholding some information, but he really didn't care at the moment.

"How do you feel" asked Road.

"Fine" said Matt as he looked down at his chest to see it was bandaged up. "Other than the fact that the anesthesia is still working I feel fine."

"Sorry" said Road. "Father said that they were doing it so the pain would stop for you."

"No, it's fine" said Matt. "I just hate not being able to move well."

"Hey Matt, how much do you remember of the mission" asked Road. Matt thought about it for a moment.

"Most of it actually" said Matt. "Actually the only thing I can't remember is what happened after I got hit. But I can assume what happened. Why do you ask?"

"Well Tyki said that your injuries weren't as bad as they appeared to be. So I was just curious if you knew why."

"Oh, well I used my stone armor to absorb a small amount of the blow. Unfortunately I was shot by a very powerful piece of innocence. Even though the one who used it was weak with it, I was still unable to absorb most of the attack."

"Really" Road said with interest.

"Yeah, I guess I have to watch out for gun type innocence" Matt chuckled a little. "Those things pack one hell of a punch."

The two talked for a little while before Matt remembered something.

"Road, do you know where Liza is" asked Matt.

"I believe she's with Tyki right now getting something to eat" said Road.

"How is she doing?"

"Better, Tyki was with her for a while yesterday trying to calm her down a little. She's a bit upset that you got hurt."

"Great" said Matt as he shook his head. "The last thing I need is for her to worry about me" said Matt as he went to get up but Road tried to stop him.

"Matt you can't go right now, you need your rest" said Road.

"Sorry Road but in this situation I need to talk to her" said Matt as he gently pushed Road aside and stood up. He grabbed a long coat that was on a hangar and left the room. Road sighed a little and gently rested Lily on the bed and went after him.

* * *

><p>Liza and Tyki were in the dining room eating when Matt entered the room with Road right behind him. Liza looked up at Matt, when she saw the bandages wrapped around him a sudden wave of guilt came over her.<p>

"Matt how are you feeling" said Tyki as Matt approached them.

"I am doing pretty well" said Matt. "The anesthesia is wearing off now and I can finally start to move by arm a bit more freely so that's a good thing."

"I see the wound is healing faster than expected" said Tyki. Matt looked at him with a confused look.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well that anesthesia was designed to only wear off when your injuries began to fully heal. It was something designed by the doctors here with the help of some Skulls. It was made specifically for you so you don't go running off on some mission until your injuries healed."

"Gee thanks" Matt said a bit sarcastically. "It's good to know that you trust me."

"Matt, you need have to admit that you of all people are most likely to do something reckless, even when injured" said Tyki who could hear Matt's sarcasm. "The anesthesia is there to let you know if you are ready to fight. Once it is completely gone then you are healed."

"Well that explains why it's lasted so long" said Matt. "Usually the anesthesia only lasts an hour or so. I should've realized something was strange about this. But I'm not here to talk about that. I'm here to talk to Liza." Liza looked up at Matt.

"What's up" asked Liza.

"Liza it has come to my attention that you feel guilty for allowing me to take the hit instead of you."

"No it's not that" said Liza. "I feel guilty over the fact that I did nothing to help. I could've made a shield or something to help."

"Liza, I got in the way because I didn't want you to get hurt" said Matt, interrupting Liza. "You should not feel guilty over my choice or the fact that you couldn't do anything. If I knew you could defend yourself then I would've just warned you but I could tell that you were exhausted so I stepped in."

"How would you have known that I was tired" asked Liza.

"A few ways. First off I was starting to get tired myself as controlling all those stone soldiers is difficulty to do, so I was able to safely assume that you were tired by that point more so than me given the high amount of orbs you created" Matt said, remembering the 2 near misses from her orbs. "Secondly, I had to assume that you used your healing abilities on yourself at least a few times during the fight, am I right?"

"Yeah I used them a few times" Liza admitted.

"And finally, and this was just a confirmation that I made the right choice, the fact that you didn't heal me after I was shot was proof enough that you no longer had the energy to create a shield or heal for that matter."

"Hold on, what if you were wrong" asked Road. "What if Liza was just caught off guard and began to panic and forgot that she could heal you?"

"Well then I would've taken a bullet for no reason at all" said Matt. "Wouldn't change the fact that I don't regret my actions." Matt walked up to Liza. "Liza, forget this guilt you feel, it is unnecessary and uncalled for, and it sort of offends me that you would doubt my decisions. I mean isn't that something that friends do?"

"Yeah, you're right" said Liza and she smiled at Matt. "I'm sorry." Matt smiled back.

"Not a problem" said Matt. "Now is there any leftover food here? I'm starving." Matt took his seat across from them and a maid brought out some food for Matt to eat after a few minutes. He quickly ate his food and when he finished he leaned back in his chair and sighed with satisfaction.

"Man the food here never gets old" said Matt and Liza laughed a little. Matt looked at Liza. "What?"

"Nothing at all" said Liza as she smiled at Matt.

"Oh come on tell me!"

"It's nothing I swear. I was just thinking how happy you look despite your injuries."

"And you found this amusing" Matt asked in disbelief.

"A little, yeah. I don't see why you can be so happy even though you're hurt."

"I guess I'm happy that I know I'll be alright" said Matt. "I don't really know why exactly but that's what I think at the very least." Road, who was sitting next to Matt suddenly got up from her chair. Everyone looked at her, confused.

"You know what, I'm bored, let's all play a game" said Road.

"I'm out" Tyki immediately said, Road pouted a little at Tyki.

"But I haven't even said what the game would be" Road whined.

"True, but I've seen your 'games' with Matt and he almost always returns injured. There's no way I'm going to play a game with you." Road glared at Tyki then smiled at Liza.

"Liza will you play" asked Road.

"I don't see why not" said Liza who then turned to Tyki. "Tyki you can just watch if you want." Tyki sighed but agreed to at least watch. Road then turned her attention to Matt.

"Matt, you're going to play as well, right?"

"Well, I can move my arm once again. I'll have to take it a bit easy but yes I'll play with you Road." Road jumped a little as she grabbed Matt's arm which caused him to fall to the ground as she walked away. Tyki shook his head a little and stood up with Liza and followed Road and the now being dragged, Matt out of the room.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 73 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. As always Liza is owned by SpiderWraith who was kind enough to let me use her character in my story. I realize that this is the third chapter since the last battle and I do plan on putting in another battle soon enough. I just wanted to give you the heads up. **

**As I have mentioned in the last few chapters, there is a poll going on that is on my page here on the site. I still highly recommend you to vote for who you want Matt to fight. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	73. Embarrassment

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt, Road, and Liza stood in the streets of the village part of Mont Saint Michel near the draw bridge. Tyki was there but kept his distance so he wouldn't get involved, though he was ready to call for akuma to show up and cart one of them the medical wing for the inevitable injuries that would ensue.

"Ok Road, you brought us out here, what's your game" asked Liza curious to hear about what game she wanted to play.

"A simple game of catch" grinned Road. Matt shook his head.

"You're kidding, right" Matt asked in disbelief.

"What" whined Road. "I thought you liked that game."

"It's not that I don't but I mean do you think that Liza should also play this as well? You and I have been the only ones who have ever played this."

"Oh I'm sure that it won't matter."

"Road, we only have rules that apply to only us, Liza won't apply to those rules putting her at an advantage" Matt insisted. Liza listened not knowing what they were talking about; she knew about their games, everyone did. But she had no idea there were rules to their game.

"Awww, is Matt worried that he's going to lose to Liza" Road teased.

"N-no that's not it all! I just think that she should have restrictions against her as well!"

"Hear that Liza, Matt thinks he's going to lose to you" Road said to Liza, continuing to tease Matt.

"Well I don't blame him" Liza grinned. "After all I did beat him in our last game."

"I thought I told you that I hadn't counted the stone soldiers" Matt protested. "Their kills count as mine!"

"Whatever you say" said Liza. Matt glared at her.

"Road, don't put restrictions on Liza, but in turn remove mine."

"All except your stone hands, those aren't fair at all" said Road.

"She has those ribbons, they do the same thing" said Matt.

"Fine" said Road. "All restrictions lifted, but give me a longer head start."

"Deal" said Matt. "Just don't use your door."

"No promises" said Road and she took off. Matt began to stretch his right arm. The numbness was pretty much gone now.

"Hope you're ready to lose Liza" Matt grinned as he finished stretching.

"Not a chance Matt."

"Right, well we'll see. I think she's gotten enough of a head start, on the count of 3" said Matt. "One, two, three!" And the two took off after Road. Tyki stood there and shook his head.

"Here we go again" said Tyki. "I better go get a doctor ready." Tyki then walked off.

* * *

><p>Matt and Liza were neck and neck until Liza activated her innocence and used her wings to lift into the air and fly faster.<p>

"Hey no fair" yelled Matt. "I can't fly!"

"To bad" Liza smirked as she looked back at Matt. "I guess you'll lose then." She picked up speed but as she turned around she ran straight into a stone wall, flattening herself on the stone. Matt used a stone pillar to get to the roofs.

"Hey what was that for" yelled Liza as Matt ran past.

"You should know that there aren't really any rules other than what we can and cannot use" Matt yelled back. "Getting hurt is part of the game" Matt grinned then took off, running across the rooftops, looking for Road. Liza went to recover from her hit; her nose was bleeding a little. As she took off a stone hand grabbed her and was covered in a box of stone. Matt watched as she broke free after a moment. Even though Matt was running quickly Liza was able to catch up.

"What the heck Matt? What abilities did she restrict?"

"Pretty much anything that can immobilize" said Matt.

"So everything" Liza pointed out.

"Pretty much" said Matt. "Why do you think she keeps winning?" Matt then noticed Road in an open area. He went to leap over Liza but she grabbed him by the leg and threw him into the building and went in the direction Matt was going to go.

"Sorry Matt, but according to the rules that is allowed." Liza then took off. Matt stood back up and immediately went into his ultimate form, allowed him to run faster. He quickly caught up to Liza who was surprised to see him. Matt leapt to the ground and made a move towards Road who was just standing there with a smirk on her face. Liza then dove at Road from the air hoping to catch her while Matt lunged. Road smirked and summoned her door and back stepped through it. Both Matt and Liza's eyes widened as the two collided and the momentum sent them flying through the door.

* * *

><p>Matt and Liza tumbled out and landed and rolled across the ground. When they stopped Liza was lying across Matt's stomach, both of them out of it. Road stood next to her door laughing at them.<p>

"Road, did you have to have them crash here" asked Sheril as he leaned over his desk.

"Sorry Father" said Road giving him an innocent look which he couldn't resist.

"Oh it's alright Road" said Sheril. By this point Matt and Liza came to and realized they were in Sheril's office. They both stood up and were about to go after Road again when Sheril stopped them.

"Matt the Earl has a favor to ask of you" said Sheril, grabbing Matt's arm which stopped Matt.

"Really" Matt asked confused. "What favor could the Earl possibly need me for?"

"He's busy with some soul dealers and he needs you to go out and create a new akuma." Matt eyes lit up.

"Sure I'll get on that right away. Say, I need to contact the Skulls, can I use your phone?"

"No need" said Sheril. "There's a Skull here."

"Why is that" asked Liza.

"He is here to collect some notes on the anesthesia we used on Matt."

"Ok, thanks Father" said Matt and he ran out of the room.

* * *

><p>Matt found himself in the hospital wing of the abbey, and just like Sheril said there was in fact a Skull here. The Skull looked at Matt.<p>

"Ah, what can I do for you sir" asked the Skull.

"I need you to gather one of my special frames; you have created more like instructed haven't you?"

"Of course my Lord" said the Skull. "I assume that the Earl has given you permission to use your frames?" Matt looked a bit concerned for a brief moment then it went away.

"The Earl has asked me to create a new akuma. He was not specific on the details, so I will be using my frames to get some more information on them."

"Very well my Lord, I shall notify the other Skulls" said the Skull and Matt left. Matt walked out to the courtyard to find an already opened ark gate waiting for him. Matt took a deep breath and entered.

Matt found himself in a cemetery, though he didn't know exactly where he was. But it looked like he was still in Europe, given the architecture around him. He noticed a girl that looked only a few years older than the age Matt looked, so around 18, though she was about the same height as Matt, maybe a few inches (cm) shorter. Matt was about to walk up when Majnun appeared.

"Yo Matt hold on a second" said Majnun.

"What is it" Matt asked impatiently, he wanted to create the new akuma.

"Are you sure you want her to be you next akuma? I mean if she's anything like Lily then won't her clinginess be a bit awkward?"

"I'm sure that was just a result of her age" said Matt. "Besides, I can't be picky. This is only the second time the Earl has asked me to create an akuma and I'm going to take advantage of the moment." Matt then approached the grieving girl.

The girl was apparently grieving over her childhood friend named Lynn, who had died in an accident, she was her best friend and when Matt offered to bring her back she immediately took him up on the offer. After the newly formed akuma killed the girl, she turned into a small black panther cub, then took the body of the girl. Matt smiled as the girl stood up.

"Welcome Lynn" said Matt. "Now before I send you on your first mission you will return with me back home to adjust to your new life." Matt had made the decision that he would train up any future akuma he created so he can watch over their progress. The girl stared at Matt for a moment then smiled and clung to Matt's arm which surprised him. She then looked up at Matt and gave the same innocent, yet complete devoted look that Lily gave him.

"Oh this can't be good" Matt said to himself and Majnun began to laugh.

"See what did I tell you" laughed Majnun. "She's just like Lily."

"Nonsense, she isn't like Lily, she's just happy that's all" said Matt. "They were designed to be that way."

"Master, where is home" Lynn asked in a soft voice. Matt's eyes widened even more at the first word. Majnun was now hysterically laughing.

"Crap, she is like Lily, that's not good" said Matt. "Not far, we just need to go through that gate" said Matt as he took Lynn who was still holding Matt's arm tightly as they walked through.

Matt arrived back in Mont Saint Michel where everyone was waiting for him. When they saw that Lynn was clinging to Matt, he could've sworn he heard someone snicker, but that could've been Majnun again.

"So Matt, who's your new friend" asked Tyki, a grin on his face.

"This is Lynn everyone, she is one of my akuma so I will hope you will treat her the same as you treat Lily."

"Master, is this home" asked Lynn and this time the snickers were louder and definalty coming from the other Noah there.

"Master huh" said Liza. "So this one you have calling you that? Wow Matt who knew you liked that." Matt's face turned red from embarrassment.

"It's not like that at all" said Matt. "She called me that without me telling her to, just like with Lily!"

"Sure Matt, we believe you" Road said sarcastically, taking advantage of this rare moment of Matt being embarrassed.

"I'm not kidding!" Matt then began to collect himself. "Sheril, could you add a bed to my room, there should be enough room for one."

"Sure, I take it she will be staying in the same room?"

"Yes, as I recall all the other rooms have been filled."

"Aww, you're not going to share a bed like Lily" teased Road who could've sworn Matt's face grew even redder when she said that.

"N-no nothing like that" said Matt, Road was really getting to him now. He could hear Majnun's laughs in his head which wasn't helping. "Lily is a special case, given her age I find that it doesn't matter."

"Sure Matt, that's why you're bringing another girl into your room."

"Road, stop teasing your brother" said Sheril. "I believe that you are being a bit cruel to him right now."

"Right, this is what you come to my defense for. Not the countless of other torturous things Road has done to me over the years" Matt mumbled to himself as he regained composure.

"Don't worry Matt, a bed will be added to your room right away. Are you going to call it a day then?"

"Yes I think I will it's been a long day for me" said Matt as he walked past them, Lynn still clinging, as he entered the abbey.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 74 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. As like the other chapters Liza belongs to SpiderWraith who I can't thank enough for letting me use her character in my story. **

**As you can tell I have added yet another akuma to the story. Don't worry though Lily will still play a role in the story. I just felt that it was time for another original character.**

**The poll on my page is still going on. Please go there and vote to who you want Matt to fight. Please let me know what you think the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	74. Awkward Moment

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt took his time walking back to his room. As he was arriving at his room, he saw several butlers leave his room. Without asking why they were there he looked into his room to see that a new bed had been constructed in his room, though the couch had to be removed. Luckily though the room was very large so it could fit the bed.

"Well I knew it was smart of me to merge this room with the room next door" Matt said to himself. As he walked in he saw Lily curled up in her dragon form. When she saw Matt she immediately transformed back and looked at Matt with a bit of confusion.

"Daddy, who's the weird lady with you" asked Lily as she pointed to Lynn.

"This is Lynn, Lily. She is a special kind of akuma just like you" Matt said with a smile.

"I don't get it daddy. Why did you get another me? Am I not good enough?" Lily looked like she was about to cry. Matt sighed and sat down next to her.

"No, no, no Lily you miss understand" said Matt as Lily sniffed a little bit. "Lynn is not here to replace you or anything like that. Lily you are very powerful but I want there to someone who can look after you if no one else is around and you aren't in a mission. Besides, I thought you would be happy having a sister." Lily stared at Lynn who was giving her a warm smile. Lily then turned to Lynn and smiled back accepting what Matt said.

"Good" said Matt as he stood up. "Now if you two don't mind I'm going to get ready to sleep."

"Master" said Lynn and chills ran down Matt's back, he will once again have to get used to this.

"What is it Lynn" asked Matt as he looked at her.

"Where am I to sleep?"

"You will sleep on that bed over there" said Matt as he pointed to the bed across the room. "I suggest you get some sleep it will be a busy day for you tomorrow as we will need to get you your first few kills so I can see what you are capable of." Lynn nodded and walked over to her bed and sat down. Matt went to the bathroom to prepare to sleep. After a few minutes Matt left the bathroom and went to his bed. He looked and saw that Lynn had already fallen asleep in her bed.

"The first day must be tiring" Matt said to himself.

"Well you would know if actually paid attention to Lily in her first year" said Majnun as he appeared next to him.

"You've been awfully talkative today Majnun" said Matt without looking at him.

"Yes well how can I resist such an interesting situation" Majnun grinned. "Though I find this one to be interesting." This caught Matt's attention.

"Why is that?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it but it feels like there is two of her" said Majnun as he looked at Lynn. "Like she has 2 personalities or something."

"You must be overthinking it" said Matt. "Lily doesn't have a split personalities so neither will she."

"How do you know for certain" said Majnun. "These frames of yours are still experimental, anything could happen."

"Again, you're over thinking this. But I suppose you were right last time" Matt thought for a moment as he sat down on his bed. "I suppose I can have a Skull look at her and see if there is a problem with her in comparison to Lily."

"Probably for the best" said Majnun who then disappeared. Matt yawned and laid down in his bed and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Matt slowly opened his eyes the next morning. He slept well last night, which was a rarity for him. Even though he has been sleeping more he would only sleep well a small fraction of the time. As he slowly began to wake when he suddenly realized that something was wrapped around him tightly. He went to sit up when he noticed that Lynn was practically on top of him, fast asleep. Matt freaked out a little by this, sure he was used to Lily in his bed but never once had she ever clung to him in her sleep. Matt tried to push her off but the more he tried the tighter she held on to him.<p>

"Lynn wake up" said Matt, trying to keep his voice down; if Road saw this she would never let him let forget this. He continued to try to wake her up but she simply refused to. "Oh come on she sleeps harder than Lily!" Matt could hear Majnun laughing in his mind, which Matt did not appreciate. Just then he heard the door open to his room he looked at horror as Road walked into the room.

"Hey Matt, I was wondering if I could have this candy that I found" said Road as she walked in with a bag in her hands. Road then noticed that Lynn was in a fairly compromising position on Matt and she could clearly see the horror in Matt's eyes. She dropped the bag in shock.

"Road, this isn't what it looks like I swear" said Matt as Road took a step back. Then Road had an evil smile on her face as she ran out of the room. "Oh this can't be good" said Matt as he now frantically tried to get Lynn off of him. As she refused Matt was left no choice but to use force to get her off. However right before he could do anything Lynn woke up and looked at him with a confused look for a moment. Matt looked at her and something felt off about her. Instead of her eyes being yellow as they were when she became an akuma, Lynn's eyes were now purple.

"Lynn are you alright" Matt asked Lynn. Lynn looked confused by the name he called her.

"Lynn? Who's Lynn" Lynn asked Matt as she got off Matt only to hug him again.

"You are, that's the name I gave you" said Matt confused by what was going on now.

"Just as I thought" said Majnun as he appeared to Matt again. "Looks like she has an extreme case of split personalities. But in this case it looks like she also has two sets of memoires."

"What are you saying Majnun?"

"Try asking her what her name is, you'll see what I mean" said Majnun who then disappeared.

"Gee, thanks" Matt said to himself then looked back at Lynn. "Ok if you aren't Lynn who are you? What should I call you?"

"Jynx" said the akuma as she smiled.

"Jynx huh? Interesting name, and who do you serve Jynx?"

"I serve you of course master" said Jynx.

"Well I will be the first to admit that I am utterly confused by this but I have no time to worry now. Jynx do you mind getting off me know" said Matt as he noticed that she was still pretty much on top of him.

"Do I have to master" asked Jynx, she looked upset.

"Yes, you do. I need you off me before" Matt didn't get tome to finish as Road walked back in this time with Tyki, Liza, and Sheril with her. Matt instantly became embarrassed by the situation. His face turned a deep shade of red. He could see some disappointed and upset looks in some of their eyes.

"T-this isn't what it looks like" said Matt as he finally got free and nearly fell of his bed in the process.

"Sure, that's why I saw you sleeping with the akuma when I walked in" said Road as she tried to hide the evil grin on her face.

"Matt, I never would have thought you would do something like this" Sheril said in a disappointed tone.

"Father! She did this on her own! She was asleep in her own bed when I fell asleep!"

"Sheril, he might be right there" said Tyki who was being the voice of reason here. "After all, Lily has been shown to favor sleeping on Matt's bed despite being offered her own bed." Road glared at Tyki, he was ruining her plan to get Matt in trouble.

"No I know what I saw" said Road.

"Road, we're both completely clothed" Matt said as he regained his composure and got off the bed. "I know what you're up to."

"I don't know what you're talking about" Road said defensively, her plan was backfiring.

"Whatever Road, I can't deal with this right now. I have to make sure Jynx here gets her first few kills."

"Wait who's Jynx" asked Liza.

"It's Lynn…it's a long story" said Matt. "Father, you wouldn't happen to know of any places for me to go and take out a bunch of finders and exorcists would you?"

"Well there is another mission for you. You need to clear out another Black Order safe haven. I think that mission will work."

"Yes it will, thank you Father. I'll be taking both Lily and Lynn with me here as well as Road."

"Hey" Road protested. "Why do I have to go?"

"Punishment for trying to get me in trouble" said Matt who then turned to Sheril. "Father can you have an ark gate ready for me in a few minutes? You don't need to give me the details, just send me where I need to go and consider that place destroyed."

"Very well" said Sheril and he left the room. Everyone else followed after him. Matt sighed in relief as he realized what he just avoided. Then he turned to Lily and Jynx.

"You two get ready, we're leaving soon."

Ten minutes later Matt, Road, Lily and Jynx walked through the ark gate to their next mission.

**Thanks for reading. Please review. Chapter 75 coming soon!  
>Ok, so this was a bit of a confusing chapter. So just to clarify, Jynx and Lynn is the same person, just different personalities. So when I say either name it will represent personality is being used at the moment (if it gets to confusing I will make adjustments and use only 1 name).<strong>

**Anyways, the current poll will be finishing up today so please go and vote on who you want Matt to fight. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	75. The Battle of Amboise part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt, Road, Lily and Jynx walked out of the ark gate to find themselves in an alleyway of a city. Immediately Matt realized that the gate had placed him in the middle of his target and when he saw someone walking towards them he immediately turned his arm into a sword. The man panicked and put his arms in the air.

"Wait my lord, don't attack" said the man and Matt stopped mere inches (cm) away from having his arm piece the man's throat. Matt glared at the man for a moment, contemplating whether or not he should kill the person before giving him the chance to talk. Then he realized that the man he was about to attack was an akuma.

"What are you doing here akuma" Matt asked coldly. "I was told that I was to destroy this place. So why are you here?"

"W-well that's what I'm here to explain" said the akuma. "But could you first lower your arm?" Matt stood there unmoving for a moment then he lowered his arm as it reverted to his normal arm. The akuma gave a sigh of relief.

"Alright, now explain yourself" said Matt, there was still an edge to his voice.

"The Lord Millennium has discovered that the entire city was not a Black Order haven like originally thought. It turns out that only one area of the city is actually loyal to the Black Order in any way" said the akuma.

"And which part is that" asked Matt.

"Right there" said the akuma as he turned around and pointed in front of him. Matt followed where the akuma pointed and saw a large wall that masked the cliff side. On top of the cliff were 2 buildings. A tiny stone chapel as well as a much larger main building. "This is the castle Amboise" said the akuma. "The Order has used it as a haven for a very long time apparently."

"Right, how do we get in and how many are in there" asked Matt as he continued to stare at the castle.

"There is one entrance, along the walled cliff side" said the akuma as he pointed. "As for how many are in there I cannot say. From the looks of it, the castle could hold a high amount of people, though I cannot say if it is fully occupied."

"An estimate, that's all I need" said Matt.

"Well I did notice 2 exorcists enter recently as well as maybe 10 finders, and I haven't seen them leave yet."

"Right, well if that's all then you may leave akuma" said Matt as he turned to face Road and the others.

"But my lord, I am a powerful akuma. Surely I can be of help to you."

"Your skills will not be needed here" said Matt without looking back at the akuma. "Please go before I lose my patience." The akuma without speaking bowed and walked away.

"Matt how do you want to handle this" asked Road.

"This mission will be interesting to execute" said Matt. "I need Jynx here to get her first kills, but I don't want to take any chances with this. So Road, while I handle any of the stronger exorcists there I will need you to start incapacitating as many people as you can."

"That sounds boring" Road complained.

"I don't care how badly you hurt them, just make sure they don't die" said Matt which cheered Road up a bit.

"But let me guess you are still going to kill people" said Road.

"If there are enough to do so yes" said Matt. "Besides Jynx only needs to get enough kills so she can start using her abilities. After that we can kill everyone without hesitation."

"Daddy what about us" asked Lily as she pulled on Matt's sleeve. Matt looked down at her and smiled as he placed his hand on her head.

"Lily, I need to you watch over Jynx here and make sure that nobody harms her and that whenever Road brings over a new person Jynx finishes them off." Lily smiled and nodded at Matt who looked at Jynx. "Do you understand" Matt asked Jynx.

"Of course master" said Jynx with a smile on her face.

"Right, let's get going then" said Matt and the 4 of them began to walk towards the castle. Matt walked a little behind them at first as Majnun appeared, walking next to Matt. "Come here to laugh at me some more" Matt asked Majnun.

"Not this time" said Majnun. "Matt, I just figured that I tell you that the 2 presences that I felt last night has turned to just one."

"So what does that mean" asked Matt.

"Well I think you might want to get used to calling your new akuma Jynx because I think that Lynn might be gone, that or the two presences merged becoming one."

"Right well I'll worry about that later as I am kind of busy at the moment, but thanks for telling me" said Matt. Majnun smiled then disappeared. Matt then caught up to everyone as they approached the gate that blocked them from entering.

"Well this is a pain" said Road as she smiled and summoned her door. Matt could see her door open up on the other side of the gate and they all walked through.

Once inside though an alarm instantly went off.

"Well, I think they know we're here" Matt said a bit sarcastically.

"You think so" Road asked equally as sarcastic.

"Right, let's go" said Matt as he turned his arm into a sword and run up the causeway that led to the top of the cliff. Road, Lily and Jynx followed after him.

Once at the top of the cliff Matt saw that there were dozens of armed finders waiting for him as well as several exorcists. Matt grinned and lunged into the front of the group and started cutting away at the finders there. Soon after Road showed up and created several candles and begun throwing them at finders, hitting them in non-vital areas. Lily and Jynx held back and watched the fight progress.

Eventually Matt found his way through the crowd leaving a trail of bodies behind him. A large grin could be seen on Matt's face as he continued to cut the finders down with ease. Eventually though an exorcist finally reached him. The exorcist swung his massive sword at Matt who easily leapt out of the way, causing the sword to hit the ground. At the same time an arrow flew past Matt's ear and hit the main building. Matt turned his head to see an archer exorcist standing a fair distance away as she took another shot at Matt who this time dodged the attack. However Matt didn't see the other exorcist as he took another large swing at Matt which hit him in the left arm. Because of the curse the sword could not cut his arm so Matt was sent flying into the main building breaking part of the wall as he hit it.

Road grabbed one of the incapacitated finders and dragged it back to Jynx who was still watching the battle with great interest. As Road dropped the barely alive body she immediately went back to fighting. Jynx stared at the body for a moment then went into her panther form. Because she hadn't killed anyone in this form she was still a cub and it took several bites to the finder's neck before the finder finally died. The moment he died Jynx grew a little and her claws and teeth grew a little. She looked at Lily who was now also in her medium dragon form. Lily saw the exorcists attacking Matt and shot a fireball at the exorcist with the sword.

* * *

><p>Matt was lying in a small pile of rubble as he watched one of the exorcists approach him. However before he could reach, Lily's fireball struck him, instantly killing him and setting the area surrounding the exorcist on fire. The archer exorcist looked at where her comrade once stood and then looked back at Matt. She was about to take another shot when a stone spike pierced her stomach as well as several candles piercing her back. The exorcist slumped over dead as Road walked up to her. She saw that the exorcist had died then looked at Matt.<p>

"Hey Matt, what the heck" yelled Road. "This one was mine!"

"I didn't see your name on it" Matt yelled back as he stood up. "And besides she attacked me!" Road grumbled a bit to herself. "By the way Road, I'm going to start clearing out the building here; can you take care of everything out here?"

"Sure" said Road. Matt nodded and ran into the building. Road then began to attack the remaining defenders of the castle.

Matt ran through the castle, killing anyone he could find, which were mostly finders. As he entered what looked like a ballroom. There were a few tables there that had papers scattered across them. Matt was about to go and look through them when he was hit by a strong force which sent him crashing into the wall. The crash caused the air to fill with dust which made it difficult to see. As Matt looked up he saw someone walking towards him. When the person got close enough Matt's eyes widened.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 76 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. Amboise is in fact a real location so you are more than welcome to look it up if you are curious at what the place actually looks like.<strong>

**So I've decided that Jynx will be the official name of the akuma. I decided that the split personality would be too confusing at times so I decided to keep the one I liked the most which was Jynx. **

**Also, the poll has officially ended and it is a 4-way tie! I have chosen one to show up in this fight and will be revealed next chapter! Go to my page to see the results. Thank you all for voting in the poll. I will use all those who tied for the top show up first and those who had less votes will show up later on. I will be posting a new poll later today or tomorrow so keep an eye out for it. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today! Until next time!**


	76. The Battle of Amboise part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt stared at the person who was approaching him. However after a moment a grin came over his face.

"Why hello there Lenalee" Matt said with a friendly voice, though there was no mistaken a slight evil tone was just underneath that friendliness. "It has been to long since we've last met." Lenalee didn't say anything as she stood a few steps away from Matt. Matt could see anger and sorrow in her eyes. "Oh I see. You're upset over everyone who has died here and mad at me for killing them" said Matt as he stood up.

"Why" Lenalee asked.

"What was that" asked Matt.

"Why are you doing this Matt" Lenalee asked again. "You're not a bad person so why are you constantly killing people?" Matt shook his head.

"This is war Lenalee, even you should know I am supposed to kill my enemies. And who ever said I wasn't a bad person?"

"You don't have to do this Matt! You don't have to kill. You've spared my life before even after beating me. I am an enemy so why haven't you killed me" yelled Lenalee. Matt hesitated before speaking. What she said was true. Lenalee is an enemy and he had several opportunities to kill her. So why hadn't he?

"I kill because I am ordered to, and no other reason. I haven't killed you yet because I hold no grudge against you. Though for the life of me I don't know why" said Matt as he went into his ultimate form. "However that changes today. I have been ordered by the Earl to kill everyone here and that includes you. So this is the end for you." As he finished speaking he immediately lunged at Lenalee managing to catch her off guard and punched her in the stomach. Lenalee was thrown back from the punch and she slid across the ground before standing back up. Lenalee's eyes became more focused as Matt went in for another attack. She quickly side stepped the attack and managed to kick Matt in the back which sent him flying into the wall at the far end of the ballroom. Lenalee went in for another attack when a normal sized hand grabbed her ankle. She looked down and saw a level 1 madness clone coming out of the ground. She had heard what these clones could do so she immediately kicked the clone off of her which had him land near the windows overlooking the cliff side. As soon as the clone landed it exploded causing all of the windows on either side of the room to shatter and part of the wall where the clone exploded was destroyed.

It was at this moment that Lenalee realized that Matt was serious about killing her and as she looked back at Matt she saw that he was going in for another attack. Lenalee went to attack Matt at the same time but Matt dodged and threw her against the wall that faced the courtyard where the rest of the fighting was taking place. At the same time Matt summoned several more level 1 Madness Clones. A few grabbed Lenalee who began to struggle to get free. She then used her Kirikaze ability to blow away the advancing clones, including those who held her. In her attack though she managed to destroy the wall behind her. Matt realized that he had summoned too many clones and that when they went off he would be hurt badly as well. Matt made a move to get past Lenalee and avoid the explosion but as he did the clones exploded causing Matt and Lenalee to be thrown out of the building and into the courtyard.

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><p>Road was finishing off the last of the finders who were still resisting. As she killed the last one she looked over to Jynx who was now the size of a fully grown panther. She found this odd as Jynx had apparently stopped growing after a little over a dozen kills. She walked over to Jynx and Lily, who was still in her dragon form.<p>

"Well it looks like we've finished up out here" Road said to the two akuma. "All we have to do is wait for Matt to finish up and we can get out of here." Lily and Jynx both nodded when a tornado burst out from the main building. She turned around and as the tornado disappeared, the entire section of the building erupted in explosions. From the explosion two smoke trails could be seen flying out of the building and slamming into the ground. Road began to run up when she saw Matt standing back up only to be kicked by Lenalee which caused him to go shooting past Road.

Matt rolled across the ground a bit and nearly fell off the edge of the cliff thanks to Lenalees attack. Matt slowly stood up and saw that Lenalee was quickly approaching him, ignoring Road and the others. Before she was able to get close though, a Madness Aura hand burst from the ground and grabbed her leg and swung her into the ground creating a small crater. Matt ran up to where Lenalee laid. As he approached though Lenalee used both of her legs and slammed them into Matt's chest sending him flying into the air and over the cliff.

As Matt fell he saw Lenalee show up above him and put her legs together forming her Iron Shackles attack as she dove at Matt. Matt eyes widened as Lenalee made contact with him and she forced Matt into the ground below causing a massive crater to be formed in the street.

Road watched as Lenalee made the attack and realized that Matt was in trouble.

"Lily, Jynx we need to help Matt" said Road, a bit of worry in her voice. "If we don't Matt could be in serious trouble." But before they could do anything an akuma ran up the causeway to them

"Mistress Road we have a problem" said the akuma. Road recognized it as the akuma from before.

"What is it" asked Road as she could detect the distress in the akuma's voice.

"An army of finders and exorcists are moving through the area and was notified of the attack on the haven! They're on their way her as we speak and will arrive shortly."

"What! Why is there an army in this area" Road asked in shock and anger.

"I'm not sure, there wasn't supposed to be any notable sized Black Order forces in the area. And there is more bad news."

"Great what is it?"

"Apparently there is also French military nearby as well and the Order has convinced them to aid them. This is going to double the reinforcements that the Black Order will have."

"That's not too bad, I doubt the military will be able to do anything significant" said Road. "How many akuma do we have around here?"

"A dozen or so, including me" said the akuma. "But we will still be heavily outnumbered."

"That's fine, go gather them up and meet me by the river" said Road. The akuma bowed and ran off. Road then turned to Lily and Jynx. She summoned her door. "Jynx I need you to go back home and get Father and Tyki here immediately. Tell them the situation." Jynx transformed into her normal form.

"Ok, I'll be back as soon as I can" Jynx said seriously, recognizing the situation they were in. She then ran into the door which closed behind her. Lily then looked at Road with a worried look.

"Don't worry about Matt Lily" said Road. "I know what I said earlier but he's beaten her before. He will be fine. Right now though I'm going to need your help." Lily nodded and followed after Road as they left the castle to head towards the river.

* * *

><p>Lenalee leapt off of Matt who was still lying in the crater. She looked back thinking she had defeated Matt and was shocked when Matt rose from the ground relatively unharmed. Matt turned to face Lenalee.<p>

"Good thing Majnun reminded me of that invulnerable ability I had otherwise I might be dead right now" Matt said with a grin as a little blood trickled out from him mouth. Matt noticed it and wiped the blood away. "Though that ability has apparently grown weaker it seems."

Matt didn't give Lenalee any time to respond as he rushed towards her. Lenalee, caught off guard, went to protect herself as Matt spun around and kicked her into the building behind her. Matt took a few steps back and large Madness Aura tentacles began to wrap around the building. Once it finished Matt closed his hand and the tentacles constricted, crushing the building and anyone who was in it.

However before Matt could blink a section of the house burst open and Lenalee came flying out. She watched from the sky as the building was destroyed. Matt jumped into the air to attack her but Lenalee evaded and kicked Matt into another building a little ways away from the newly destroyed building. After a moment Matt leapt out of the roof of the building and jumped to another. As he landed on the roof of a neighboring building the previous building exploded and burned to the ground. Lenalee was infuriated at Matt for killing innocent people and lunged at Matt for another attack.

* * *

><p>Road was with Lily and all of the gathered akuma. In total there were 15 akuma there. They saw that on the other side of the river was the approaching army. Including the French military there were maybe over a hundred of them, though most were from the French military. Road took the akumas to the bridge that they would have to cross. Instead of going out to attack she decided to let them come to her. In her off time, and when not playing games with Matt, Matt would teach her some basic strategies in fights, though she couldn't remember if sitting back and waiting was one of his suggestions. She could hear Matt and Lenalee fighting behind them and was wondering how Matt was doing. But she didn't have time to think about it because soon enough finders, exorcists and members of the French army began attacking them.<p>

A few minutes of fierce fighting passed and Road quickly began to realize that they were being overwhelmed. Several of the akuma fighting had already been destroyed and it was only a matter of time before they would all be beaten. Road frantically tried to remember some of the strategies Matt had taught her but wasn't remembering anything. She became lost in thought and was almost hit by an attacking exorcist if Lily hadn't bit the person in half with a single bite. Road snapped out of it and looked at Lily.

"Lily, we need all of the akuma to fall back into the town, hopefully by then Jynx will return!" Lily nodded and let out a roar that signaled to the other akuma to fall back. Lily took off into the air and began to fly back as Road followed suit. As she ran into the city she heard another crash and hoped Matt was alright.

* * *

><p>Matt was losing badly to Lenalee. He wasn't able to react fast enough to Lenalee's attacks and was getting kicked around like a rag doll. Dozens of buildings were heavily damaged as Matt crashed in and out of buildings. Finally, Lenalee kicked Matt into the ground one last time and this time Matt didn't get to his feet. Instead he sat up and leaned against a wall. He breathed heavily as blood was dripping off of his face from head wounds. He watched as Lenalee landed on the ground and walked up to him. Matt could barely move, he had lost the fight and they both knew it. It was at this time he saw Lily fly past them in the sky and Matt smiled.<p>

"Well it looks like they're alright still" Matt said to himself then he looked at Lenalee who still had an angry look on her face. "That look doesn't suit you" Matt smirked but ended up coughing a little.

"I have a good reason to have this look" Lenalee said angrily. "You killed innocent people, how could you do that!"

"Very easily" Matt said sarcastically. "They were going to die anyways so I just sped the process up a bit."

"Well you won't be able to kill anymore because I am going to finish you off" said Lenalee.

"That's not very nice, I've spared your life twice and you don't give me a chance" Matt laughed a little but once again began to cough. "Damn, oh well. I don't think you have it in you though." Lenalee hesitated for a moment then raised her leg to crush Matt's skull. But as she did an orb struck the ground next to her which caused her to get blown away in the opposite direction. Matt eyes widened a little as he watched what happened. He looked up in the direction the orb came from and his eyes widened even more. Flying in the sky, innocence activate was Liza.

"Liza" Matt said weakly as he felt his injuries getting worse. Liza grinned.

"Hey Matt heard you were in trouble so I thought I come and give you a hand."

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 77 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter as I had a blast writing it. This is the first real big battle that I've written in a while and it feels great doing it again! **

**So as you have just read Lenalee was the first person from the 4 way tie that I chose to write about. If you are curious to who was in the tie, I would suggest going to my page and find out. I will keep the poll results up while I figure out the next poll for you (it will have to do with advancing the story like all the others). Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	77. The Battle of Amboise part 3

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

"Liza, what are you doing here" Matt asked weakly as Liza landed on the ground and ran to him.

"Well, we were contacted by Jynx saying that you needed some help in completing your mission" said Liza as she began healing Matt with her healing abilities. "I was the first to arrive." When she finished healing Matt she helped Matt up. As he stood up he looked for Lenalee who was nowhere to be found. Matt then realized that he could hear some fighting going on.

"What's going on here" Matt asked Liza as they walked into the street that followed the river.

"Well from what I know you had some bad timing and there were more finders and exorcists in the area" said Liza.

"I see. Wait, what did you mean you were the first to arrive?" Liza grinned.

"Well, Tyki and Sheril left to get some help for this one." As she finished several ark gates opened up and out of them dozens upon dozens of akuma of varying levels came pouring out of the gates and immediately began entering the city. Matt watched as Tyki and Sheril walked out of one of the gates as they all closed behind them.

"Tyki, Father" said Matt as they approached.

"Matt, there has been a change of plans" said Tyki. Matt looked at him with a confused look. "The Earl has decided that the entire city is expendable here. We are to destroy it before we leave." Matt grinned and then looked up as he saw Lily fly overhead. Lily noticed Matt and landed on the ground near them. Matt grinned and walked up to her.

"Right, then I will leave the main battle to you three" said Matt.

"Where are you going" asked Sheril.

"There's an exorcist that escaped me, I'm going to hunt her down" said Matt as he climbed onto Lily who then took off into the air. Tyki, Sheril and Liza then immediately took off to enter the battle.

Matt flew over the city on Liza as he scanned for Lenalee. The battle was getting larger by the second it seemed like as buildings at random were being destroyed. The citizens of the city were now beginning to flee only to be caught in the crossfire.

"Lily, once we find who I am looking for I need you to start setting the city on fire. And find Road and make sure she's ok" said Matt as he rode on Lily's back. Lily nodded and at the same time Matt saw Lenalee fighting a level 3 akuma in the city below, protecting what appeared to be some finders. Matt grinned and leapt of Lily and fell down towards Lenalee. When Lily noticed Matt was gone she immediately dove closer to the ground and began to breathe fire over a large area as she flew setting the area on fire.

* * *

><p>Lenalee was just finishing off the level 3 akuma. She turned to face the finders only to see Matt land on top of one of them, killing him instantly. In the next moment Matt managed to kill all the finders Lenalee just fought to protect.<p>

"Why hello there Lenalee" said Matt with a smile. "I've been looking for you, I was so upset that you ran away from our little fight." Lenalee looked at Matt in shock to see him completely healed. But she didn't have time to think anymore as Matt in the very next instant was punching her in the stomach which sent her flying through the street. Lenalee tumbled across the ground before recovering. She looked for Matt in front of her but saw nothing. She then realized that Matt was behind her, but before she could do anything Matt kicked her into a nearby building. Inside the building several level 1 Madness Clones emerged from the ground. Lenalee destroyed the wall opposite from where she entered and tried to get out before they exploded. Unfortunately for her, several of the clones went off before she could get out and was sent flying out of the building from the force of the explosion which caused the house to collapse. Lenalee found herself on the ground unable to move as she watched as Matt began to walk towards her.

The fighting was still going strong in several parts of the city. Lily had done exactly what Matt had asked and because of that much of the city was in flames. As Lily flew, she noticed Road fighting an exorcist on the ground. Realizing her orders she immediately stopped what she was doing and went to help Road. As a result, Lily ended up landing on top of the exorcist, crushing him. Road gave a sigh of relief when she saw Lily land. Lily gave Road a curious look which Road immediately understood.

"I'm alright Lily. I was fighting some exorcists in one of my dimensions when this exorcist attacked me. He was strong but surprisingly dim-witted." Lily continued to look at her. "Fine, I'll head back towards the river. And no, I can handle myself" said Road answering Lily's unspoken questions. Lily nodded and took off again. Road looked around to see if there were any stragglers before heading off herself.

The tide of the battle had changed drastically upon the reinforcing akuma and Noah. The overwhelming numbers of akuma alone was enough to turn the tides but with the addition of 3 more Noah, the battle for the Black Order became a hopeless one. Sheril and Tyki had teamed up to fight off some exorcists, though none of them proved to be of any real challenge thanks to Sheril's body manipulation, he was able to immobilize the exorcists while Tyki finished them off. Liza was somewhere else in the city dealing with the remainder of the French military presence in the city.

* * *

><p>Matt was holding Lenalee in the air with a Madness Aura hand as he decided on how he was going to kill her. As he did he noticed Lenalee's glare.<p>

"Oh don't be that way" said Matt. "I take no pleasure in killing you."

"Then why are you" Lenalee managed to say. The hand gripping her body was making it difficult to breath.

"Orders are orders" Matt said calmly. "Not much I can do about it. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time I suppose. So tell me Lenalee, do you want to die quickly or slowly? I can't say for certain which would be more painful for you though" Matt grinned.

"If you're going to do it then just get it over with" said Lenalee. Though she didn't want to die she knew that she wasn't going to get free on her own. She was also hoping that he would spare her life like he had done before.

"Very well then" Matt said with a smile and the Madness Aura hand began to tighten its grip on Lenalee who let out a slight scream. However just before he could do anything more a claw slashed through the aura causing Lenalee to fall to the ground with a thud. Matt looked to see who was responsible and his smile faded. There, standing in front of Lenalee was Allen Walker.

"You're going to have to go through me if you want to land a single finger on Lenalee" Allen said as he prepared to attack Matt.

"Very well then" said Matt and two Madness Aura arms burst from the ground and went to crush Allen. Allen leapt out of the way before the attacks landed and charged at Matt. Allen used Edge End and swung his clawed hand at Matt who easily dodged. But Allen followed up the attack by using his Crown Belt to latch onto Matt and throw him into a building. Matt moved away from the building as Allen launched another attack. Allen this time used Cross Grave which his caused an explosion which sent Matt through the building and into the street behind it.

Matt was seriously wounded but not enough for him to stop. Allen ran through the building only to be grabbed by a Madness Aura hand and thrown into the ground before getting picked up again and get tossed around before finally having the arm crush him into the ground. Matt watched as the Madness Aura dissipated and saw Allen slowly standing up. Allen was about as wounded as Matt was because of that last attack. Allen however created his sword of exorcism and hit Matt with his death ball ability which sent Matt flying into a building further down the street. Allen breathed heavily as he retreated back to Lenalee.

Matt was very slow to stand back up and once he did he staggered around for a bit before he was able to walk forward. Matt made it back to the street where Lenalee was only to see Allen walk through it with Lenalee in his arms. As Allen's gate closed Matt fell to the ground in exhaustion. He rolled over onto his back and watched the sky seemingly burn thanks to the fact that the city was now on fire. It was at this time where Road was running by and noticed Matt lying on the ground. Worried that he had been severely injured she ran as quickly as possible over to him.

"Matt are you alright" yelled Road as she ran up to him. Matt looked over and smiled as he saw Road approaching him.

"Just fine Road" said Matt. "Just a little tired, that's all." When Road finally reached him she saw that he had several wounds across his body but none of them were life threatening. "Tell me how the fight is going elsewhere."

"We're cleaning up the last of them now" said Road. "Matt what happened to Lenalee?"

"She escaped. Walker came to her rescue and he left with Lenalee" said Matt as he stood back up.

The two walked back to the street next to the river to see everyone waiting around.

"Hey Matt what took you so long" Liza joked. "We've been waiting forever for you!"

"Yeah, yeah" said Matt. "Keep talking Liza. Next time I'll have you fight what I was fighting and see if you're still saying that." Liza grinned and an ark gate opened and they all entered to return home leaving behind a burning city with thousands of bodies from the Black Order all the way to civilians covering the street as well as the remains of dozens of destroyed akuma.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 78 coming soon!**

**Well that ends this battle and I certainly hoped you enjoyed it as I really enjoyed writing it!**

**I am also going to be updating my profile today to include quick bios for Lily and Jynx ao please go check that out if you had any questions about either of them.**

**Anyways some of you might be wondering if the fight at the end between Matt and Allen counted as me completing part of the promise to include him into a major battle. Well to that I say no. Allen will be in his own major battle as well so don't worry. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	78. Complete Embarrassment

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt and the others made their way to the library. The library had turned into one of the few places that everyone could go to and still relaxes making it one of the best places for them to go after a mission. Everyone grabbed a book except Road, Lily and Jynx as everyone sat down. Sheril sat in one of the armchairs while Tyki and Liza sat down on the couch next to where Sheril was sitting. Road took up the entire couch across from them as Lily accompanied her there. Matt also sat in an armchair that was next to Road and Jynx remained standing next to Matt.

"Well that went well" said Tyki as he opened his book.

"Well I'll be the first to admit that that mission got out hand relatively quickly" said Matt as he kept the book on his lap, leaving it unopened. "If it wasn't for you guys that battle may have ended badly for us."

"Well if you had just killed Lenalee like you were supposed to we could've gotten out of there long before the reinforcements" Road complained, though she only did this to bug Matt. "And then after all that you let her get away" Road smirked.

"Well she caught me off guard" Matt said defensively. "I wasn't expecting her to be there and she's not exactly weak. And I didn't let her go! Walker interfered and managed to escape with Lenalee." Road, Tyki, Sheril and Liza looked at Matt with a surprised look.

"I didn't know Allen was there" said Tyki a bit surprised.

"Yeah, he showed up right as I was in the process of finishing Lenalee off. I wasn't prepared for him being there and he was able to fight me off long enough to retreat with Lenalee" said Matt.

"When did he get there" asked Road.

"I have no idea, I take it you didn't see him when the reinforcements arrived" Matt asked Road.

"Nope" said Road.

"Then he must have shown up sometime between when everyone else showed up and when he rescued Lenalee" said Matt, thinking out loud. "By the way Liza, I really must thank you for healing me when you found me" Matt smiled.

"It's no problem, that's what friends are for" said Liza. "However you should thank Jynx, she was the one who let us know that you and Road were in trouble." Matt looked up to Jynx who was now looking at him. Matt gave her a warm smile.

"Thank you Jynx, I really can't thank enough for getting help" said Matt as he smiled. Jynx smiled back then leaned in and kissed him. Matt's smile immediately vanished and a look of pure shock came over his face. Everyone's jaw dropped. Sheril's book slipped out of his hands and landed on the ground as he stared at the situation that was unfolding in front of him. Road on the other hand burst out laughing. Matt gently, but quickly pushed Jynx away from him.

"J-Jynx! Why on earth did you do that" Matt yelled in shock.

"I thought it was appropriate for the moment master" Jynx said with a smile.

"Awwww, look at Matt and Jynx" Road teased. Matt's face turned red.

"Road, cut that out" Matt tried to say threateningly but the fluster in his voice only made Road laugh more. "I'm serious! I didn't expect her to do that!"

"Then why did she" asked Liza who was also teasing Matt a little as she found the situation to be very amusing.

"I-I don't know" said Matt as he looked back at Jynx who still had a smile on her face but he could see that there was a little confusion in her eyes. "I don't know at all." Matt then stood up and nearly stormed out of the library.

"Matt where are you going" asked Sheril as he finally recovered from the surprise.

"To meditate" said Matt as he left the room. Jynx's smile left her face and now had a complete look of confusion on her face.

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><p>Matt entered his mediation room and walked over to his desk. Without sitting down he pulled out some documents dealing with the akuma frames and their programming. He wanted to know the reason behind her behavior. As he was doing this he sensed someone enter the room. Matt turned around to see Jynx standing in the room. She had an upset and sad look on her face.<p>

"Master, did I do something wrong" Jynx asked Matt. Matt sighed and put the documents away and walked over to her. When he approached her he put a hand on her shoulder and smiled.

"No, you just caught me off guard that's all" said Matt.

"But you seemed very upset. And you stormed out of the room…"

"Well I'm sorry I appeared upset" said Matt. "I just couldn't handle Road making fun of me again today" Matt smiled.

"So you're not mad at me" asked Jynx the look in her eyes showed more happiness in them.

"No I'm not. I can't get upset over such a trivial thing" said Matt. Jynx then got a large smile and hugged Matt who after a moment put his arm around her. "Just do me a favor. Try not to do something like that again." Jynx looked up at Matt and nodded. "Good" said Matt as he gently pulled Jynx away from him. "Well I think I will go to bed today. You are free to do what you want." Matt then went to leave the room. "Oh one more thing, when you go to bed tonight, please don't go sleeping in my bed. That's why I placed a second bed in there." Jynx nodded and Matt left the room.

* * *

><p>The next morning Matt woke up from a relatively good night of sleep. As he was waking up he felt something furry brushing up against his right arm. Matt looked up and saw that Jynx was in her panther cub form curled up next to Matt fast asleep. Matt sighed a little then looked over to her bed and saw that the bed sheets where moved around showing Matt that she had slept in her bed.<p>

"She must have slept walked into your bed" said Majnun who appeared sitting on the edge of his bed. "Looks like she's going to be a handful, just like I said she would."

"I hear your concern but I think everything will be alright. She's just like Lily only she shows her affection a bit differently" Matt said quietly as to not wake Jynx. He noticed that Lily was not in his room which he found to be curious.

"So that means you liked that little kiss she gave you yesterday" Majnun grinned.

"I'm not going to dignify that with a response" said Matt and Majnun laughed a little.

"Well say what you want but that won't stop me or any of the others from making fun of you" Majnun grinned then disappeared. Matt sighed then looked at the sleeping panther. He slid past her and sat on the edge of his bed. He then gently picked Jynx up by the loose skin on her neck and held her in front of him so that her face was right in front of his. Jynx lazily opened her drowsy eyes. She blinked a few times then let out a yawn before continuing to stare at Matt.

"Good morning Jynx" Matt said with a smile. "Did you enjoy your night?" Jynxed stared at him for a little bit longer then licked the tip of Matt's nose with her tongue. Matt couldn't help but laugh a little. "Well when you put it that way how can I get mad at you for not listening to me" Matt smiled as he stood up. He took a few steps still carrying Jynx by the neck then he moved his extended arm to the side and released her. Jynx then transformed into her human form after landing on her feet.

"I really am sorry master" said Jynx.

"And I believe you. Now hurry up I'm starving and want to eat" said Matt as he left the room with Jynx following right behind him.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 79 coming soon!**

**Well I hoped you enjoyed the chapter as I had a fun time writing this one. It took me a while to figure out just how I wanted this chapter to play out and I think it turned out pretty well.**

**So yesterday I said I was going to update my profile with a quick bio of Lily and Jynx. Well I was able to add Lily to the page. I hadn't really finished thinking up all of Jynx's character at the time and will add her to the page today so please go read it to get a better idea of Jynx. Please let me know what you think of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	79. Sparing Match Liza vs Matt

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

A month had passed since the battle that took place in Amboise and things were fairly quiet. Aside from the few missions to destroy innocence Matt and the others spent most of their time back in Mont Saint Michel spending their days doing whatever they pleased. One day, Matt was eating in the dining room when Liza and Road walked in. Matt looked as they walked in.

"Where have you two been today" Matt asked as they sat down across from him.

"We were on a mission" said Liza.

"Why, did you miss us" Road teased.

"Not particularly" said Matt as he looked back at his food and began to eat again. "I was enjoying the peace and quiet." A scowl came over Road's face which made Matt grin.

"So what have you been up to today" Liza asked Matt, trying to defuse the tension that Matt had just caused. Last week when they did this they nearly took out the village below in the fallout of the argument over Road once again breaking into Matt's vault.

"Not much" said Matt as he finished eating. "I was just thinking about heading out for a bit to do some light training."

"Really" said Road. "Is Majnun teaching you something new?"

"No, he's being stubborn about that" said Matt as he shot a glare at Majnun who was sitting next to him, though nobody else could see him, they all knew that the glare was intended for him.

"Don't give me that look" Majnun said in a pleasant tone. "You have no need to learn anything new at the moment." Matt rolled his eyes then looked back at Road and Liza.

"Actually I was thinking about working on my earth manipulation a little bit, nothing special."

"Mind if we join you" asked Liza.

"Well…" Matt hesitated for a moment, thinking about it.

"Come on we could have a little sparing match or something" said Liza.

"No that's quite alright" said Matt "I'm not really in the mood to fight right now. I just want to work on a few things." Matt stood up and turned to leave.

"What are you scared or something" Liza said with a grin. Matt froze in place.

"I hardly think I'm scared of fighting you" said Matt.

"Oh come on, you couldn't beat me in a fight and you know it" Liza taunted. Matt's hands clenched into fists as he stood there. "I mean you lost to me in our game in Monteriggioni, and you couldn't beat me in our game against Road. I doubt you could beat me in a straight up fight anymore." Matt's fists slowly loosened.

"Fine, if it's a fight you want so badly then so be it" said Matt. "Just give me a minute to grab my coat and we will be off." Matt then left the room. Liza and Road looked at each other then followed Matt.

Matt entered his room where Jynx and Lily were both sleeping in their akuma forms on Matt's bed. Jynx woke up when Matt entered and jumped off the bed, which wasn't very far as she was in her full size panther form. After she landed on the ground she walked up to Matt and rubbed up against his leg like any cat would. One thing that Jynx learned over the last month was that Matt didn't care nearly as much if she showed affection while she was a panther so she spends as much time in this form. Matt grabbed his long coat and put it on. Jynx licked his left hand and looked up at him.

"No Jynx I'm not going on a mission right now" said Matt as he pat her on the head and turned to leave. "Just going out for a bit. I'll be back soon. Go back to sleep." Jynx nodded and leapt gently back onto the bed so she didn't wake Lily. She then curled up and fell back asleep as Matt left the room.

Matt met Road and Liza out on the courtyard and was surprised to see Tyki with them.

"Tyki what are you doing here" Matt asked.

"Liza wants me to come" said Tyki.

"Of course. Well I hope you're ready to see Liza lose."

"I heard about that" said Tyki.

"So where are we going" asked Road.

"Pont du Hoc" said Matt. "It's out of the way so we shouldn't have to deal with any unwanted guests. Road nodded and summoned her door which everyone then entered.

* * *

><p>Everyone exited the door to find themselves on a long flat stretch of land where one entire side was a large cliff overlooking the ocean. The wind was blowing fairly rough as they walked a little bit. Eventually though Matt began to put some distance between him and Liza.<p>

"So, the loser is the one who surrenders or can no longer fight" asked Liza.

"That is generally how a fight works" said Matt as he cracked his knuckles as he turned to face her. Liza activated the innocence in her arms causing her hands into claws and sprouted dark angelic wings.

"Right, Tyki and I will make sure you two don't go killing each other" said Road as she sat down on a rock.

"Meaning just me" said Tyki. "You two can start whenever you are ready." As soon as he finished saying this Matt charged at Liza. He turned his arm into a sword and took a swing at Liza who took off into the air. Matt pivoted and, using his earth manipulation to propel him, leapt into the air where he took another stab at Liza who managed to block the attack with her claw. Matt was forced to land back to the ground. As he did though several large stone pillars rose from the ground and began to surround Liza. Liza then formed several orbs and sent them at the pillars destroying them. She then directed the rest of her orbs at Matt who was once again running towards her.

Matt dodged and weaved his way through the orbs which exploded on the ground either next to him or behind him. After dodging about a dozen orbs Matt leapt back into the air for another attack but this time Liza countered with her razor sharp wings which caused Matt to raise his arms in defense. Liza then forced Matt into the ground with a lot of force.

Matt was able to absorb most of the impact by turning the area around him into sand. As Matt stood up though several stone clones burst from the ground and surrounded Matt. After a few seconds Liza couldn't distinguish the real Matt from the clones. All of the clones then began to attack Liza. Matt was using his earth manipulation to make all of the clones seem like him by making them use various earth manipulation abilities. After a minute though Liza got tired of this and created several ribbons and shot them through the clones, causing them to crumble away. She scanned the area for Matt but couldn't see him. Then she turned around and saw Matt was falling towards her. She managed to avoid the attack but as Matt fell past her he turned around and shot her wing with a stone spike from his hand.

Liza's right wing was now clipped for the moment and Liza went falling to the ground, unable to keep herself up with her one working wing. Matt managed to land on his feet and was immediately able to follow up his last by forming a stone hand to grab Liza and threw her to the ground. Liza was slow to stand up but as she did she created about a dozen more orbs and shot them all at Matt at the same time. Matt managed to dodge them all but as he turned to face Liza again he saw a much larger orb coming right at him. He went to raise a stone pillar to defend himself but the orb destroyed it causing a massive explosion which caused Matt to go flying backwards.

Matt skidded across the ground before coming to a stop. But before he could get up he felt one of Liza's ribbons wrap around his ankle and threw him into the air then sent him crashing back into the ground. Liza used her ribbons to spin Matt in the air but as she did Matt cut the ribbon with his arm which sent him flying towards the cliff.

Matt tumbled quickly across the ground as the cliff edge rapidly approached. Liza's eyes widened as she saw Matt's hand brush against the ground as he went over the edge. Liza ran over to the cliff and looked over. However she saw no sign of Matt.

"Should we do something" Tyki asked Road who was still sitting on the rock.

"Nope, this fight is almost over anyways" said Road with a large grin on her face. Tyki looked at her with a confused look as he looked back to Liza.

Liza was wondering what she should do. She saw Matt go over the cliff but there was no sign of him on the very tiny beach below. It was at this moment that the ground began to shake violently as she took a few steps back from the cliff she heard the ground breaking apart behind her. She turned around and looked in shock as a giant stone snake rose partly from the ground. She didn't have time to react as the snake quickly grabbed Liza with its mouth and was holding on to her as the snake's tongue wrapped around her. She then heard laughter as she saw Matt walking up to her as the snake sunk back into the ground leaving Liza lying on the ground immobilized.

"Looks like I've won" said Matt as he crouched down in front of her.

"Matt" Liza asked in shock. "But I saw you go over the cliff."

"True, but I was still touching the ground when I went over so I was able to move still on the cliff. If you had actually looked along the cliff you would've seen me." Matt then released Liza and helped her up.

"Damn it, I thought I beat you there" Liza grinned.

"And you almost did" said Matt as they walked back to Road and Tyki. "My little mistake of cutting your ribbon almost cost me the fight."

"Hey Matt I know this may sound a bit random but why are you called the Noah of Madness?"

"Are you talking about aside from the memories?"

"Yes, I've always wondered it. I mean when I think of madness I think of someone who is basically insane and you've never acted that way before" said Liza, Matt smiled.

"You know there is more than one meaning for madness" said Matt. "For example, madness also means foolish behavior."

"So which one are you?"

"Both" said Matt. "My seemingly reckless decisions and mistakes are marks of that second definition. It just happens, sometimes I just don't think about my actions and I end up doing something extremely stupid, like when I cut your ribbon at the complete wrong time."

"I see" said Liza. "Wait you said both, but I've never seen you as someone who is insane."

"True, but that's because I learned a long time ago how to control that. And if you are lucky you will never have to see me like that" said Matt. "I'm not a good person to be around when I lose my sanity."

"I'm sorry" said Liza. "I didn't mean to offend."

"Nonsense" said Matt. "It's who I am; nothing I do can change that. But let's not worry about that. Right now though I need to figure out what you owe me for losing this little fight of ours" grinned Matt.

"What?" Said Liza as the two finally reached Road and Tyki.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 80 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter as I had an absolute blast writing it (though I will admit that I am exhausted after finishing this). As usual I feel I should remind that I do not own Liza, she belongs to SpiderWraith and the story Noah of Balance (which once again if you haven't read it you should).**

**So I finally have added Jynx's bio to my page, though expect updates to it as time goes on. I would highly recommend you go and look at it. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	80. Fight at Corfe Castle: Allen vs Matt

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

It was nearly mid-day the following day and Matt was still sleeping peacefully in his bed. However his sleep began to be disturbed by the feeling of something poking his cheek and something constantly brushing his nose. Eventually this became an irritant and Matt opened his eyes to see Jynx in her cub panther form licking his nose and Lily poking him.

"What do you two think you're doing" said Matt as he grabbed the two and pulled them away from him. "I was trying to sleep."

"Sorry daddy but he told us to" said Lily as she pointed to Sheril who was sitting in an armchair. Sheril looked over and smiled to see that Matt was awake.

"Well look who finally decided to wake up" said Sheril as he stood up and walked over to Matt. "Those two have been trying to wake you up for nearly 20 minutes."

"Father, what's going on" Matt asked, a bit confused. "Why did you wake me up?"

"Well for starters, it's nearly noon and you're still in bed" said Sheril as Matt leaned up and sat on the edge of his bed. "Also, the Earl wishes to speak with you immediately."

"I knew there was a reason for you waking me" said Matt. "Tell the Earl that I am busy and that I do not want to go on a mission" said Matt.

"You can tell him that yourself" said Sheril. "He's waiting for you in the library."

"What" Matt said, shocked. "Why did he come here?"

"Like I said, he's here to talk to you" said Sheril as he went to leave the room. "Please don't keep him waiting any longer than he has been." Sheril then closed the door to Matt's room behind him. Matt sighed a little then looked down to see Jynx rubbing up against his arm.

"I wonder if he's here because of you" Matt said to Jynx who looked at him with a confused look. Matt then stood up and went to get changed. "Well either way, you and Lily will be coming with me. Jynx, please return to your human form." Jynx nodded and transformed into her human form and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Master, did creating me make the Earl upset" asked Jynx.

"Who knows" said Matt as he put his long coat on. "But I'm sure we'll find out soon enough." The three then left the room and went to the Library.

The three entered the library where they saw the Earl sitting in an armchair drinking a cup of tea. Matt walked up and bowed respectfully to the Earl.

"You wanted to see me my lord" asked Matt as he left his bow. The Earl looked up and smiled.

"Yes I did" said the Earl who looked passed Matt and looked at Jynx. "I take it that's your new akuma?"

"Yes, this is Jynx" said Matt. Jynx then gave a quick bow. "My lord, if I may ask, is the reason you're here because of Jynx?"

"No it is not" said the Earl. "Though I will admit I wanted to see this new akuma for myself. After all, you created another one of your kind of akuma without my permission."

"Forgive me but I felt that adding a second akuma wouldn't change anything. If anything having only 1 akuma wasn't helping me at all."

"Are you referring to your research" asked the Earl.

"Yes, though I do not see them as mere test subjects."

"Do not grow too attached to your akuma Matt. Remember all akuma can be replaced."

"Of course my lord" said Matt. What the Earl said stung him a little but he did not show it. "Now what was the reason you wanted to speak to me?"

"Ah yes, I have another mission for you" said the Earl. "Allen Walker has been gathering new accommodators and is in the process of bringing them to their headquarters as we speak to be equipped with innocence."

"Let me guess, you want me to go there and prevent that."

"That is correct. However, he has brought several exorcists to help him so you will not be going alone. Road, Tyki, and Liza will be accompanying you on this mission."

"Lord Millennium, I do not feel sending 4 Noah is appropriate for such a mission. Surely Road and I would be enough to handle such a simple mission."

"True, but after what happened at Amboise and the fact that you are close to their headquarters, I do not want to take any chances."

"I understand completely. So where am I going?"

"We believe they are resting for the time being in the village of Corfe in England. Go there and do whatever is necessary to complete your mission. You will find the others waiting for you in the courtyard." Matt nodded and turned to leave the library, motioning for Lily and Jynx to follow him. Matt met up with the other Noah and they travelled through the ark gate to their destination.

* * *

><p>It was a foggy day in the village of Corfe when the 4 Noah and 2 akuma arrived there. Luckily for them it didn't appear as if anyone noticed their arrival.<p>

"So what are we going to do" asked Liza as everyone finished surveying the immediate area.

"You three search the village. Kill everyone that looks to be a member of the Order and anyone they are with" said Matt.

"And what about you" asked Road.

"I'm going to check out those ruins" said Matt as he pointed to the nearby hill where they saw the ruins of an old castle. "If you finish before I get back head up there. Oh and keep Lily and Jynx with you. I bet you'll need them more than me." Everyone nodded and split up.

Matt passed the ruined wall into the castle grounds and looked up at the remains of the ancient castle.

"You know, even though it's the middle of the day this place is kind of creepy" Matt said to himself.

"Don't tell me you're losing your nerve" joked Majnun which caused Matt to glare at him.

"Of course not, I was just making an observation" said Matt.

"Just be careful, the ruins look to be very old. They are probably not very stable" Majnun warned.

"I'll take that into account" said Matt as he walked passed him and up the hill. As Matt got closer to the main ruins he could hear somebody talking. He quickly hid behind a ruined wall and peered over to see Allen Walker talking to a finder. He pulled back and listened to the conversation.

"We've stayed here for far too long" Allen said to the finder. "We need to get moving immediately."

"I understand but the accommodators, even the other exorcists are tired from the almost nonstop travelling. And besides the Earl wouldn't think about attacking us so close to headquarters."

"You would be surprised about what the Earl is willing to do in order to prevent us from increasing our forces" said Allen. "Now go tell the other exorcists that we will be leaving in a few hours." The finder nodded and ran off in the direction where Matt was hiding. As the finder passed the wall he was hit in the head with a stone spike. Allen watched as the finder fell to the ground dead. He immediately activated his innocence.

"Show yourself" said Allen. Matt stepped out and took a few steps towards Allen.

"Long time no see" grinned Matt. "If I remember correctly I have a score to settle with you from Amboise." Matt was unable to say anymore as Allen charged at Matt and took a swing at him with his claw. Matt easily evaded the attack only to follow it up with a punch of his own which mad contact forcing Allen into a ruined wall. Allen realized that fighting Matt like this wasn't going to work so he created his sword of exorcism and charged at Matt again. He took another swing at Matt who ducked the attack and punched Allen in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

Allen slowly stood back up as he regained his breath. He looked at Matt who stood there confidently. Allen swung his sword causing an energy arc to leave his sword and shoot towards Matt. Matt raised his arms to defend himself, making sure his left arm was in front as the arc hit him and pushed him back a little. As the arc dissipated Matt lost his balance a little giving Allen an opening to kick Matt into a wall and thrust his sword at him. Matt blocked it with his left arm.

"Sorry Allen but it looks like not even your sword can affect this arm" grinned Matt but the grin quickly went away as he felt his arm become extremely heavy and extreme pain shot through his arm. Even though the sword couldn't pierce his arm it was still trying to exorcise him. The pain could be clearly seen on Matt's face as Allen pulled the sword away and created a death ball which exploded in front of Matt.

Matt was sent flying through the wall and down the hill into the castle grounds. Smoke seemed to be pouring off Matt's body as he rolled to a stop. Matt was very slow to get up from the attack and by the time he finally stood up Allen was down with him and about to attack again. Matt sent several Madness Clones to attack him but Allen destroyed them all before Matt had a chance to detonate any of them. As Allen got closer Matt attempted to create a few Madness Aura arms to grab Allen but Allen was able to dodge and destroy them.

Finally Allen reached Matt and took a swing at Matt who instinctively raised his arms to defend himself. The sword his left arm and Matt was sent flying into a wall that once served as a defensive wall. Matt was able to stand but he was slumped over in pain. He hadn't recovered at all from the last attack which did more damage than anticipated and after that attack he felt off somehow. His head was everywhere at once and he couldn't seem to collect any thoughts. Even Majnun, who he could usually hear at any given time couldn't be heard.

As Allen approached Matt Road and Tyki entered the grounds looking for Matt. Their eyes widened as they saw Matt. Matt noticed them and as they ran to help he raised his left arm signaling for them to stop. Allen knew that someone else was there but kept his attention on Matt. After Road and Tyki stopped Matt shook his head and they could see in his eyes that he was telling them to run away, though they did not know why. Matt then looked at Allen.

"If I were you I wouldn't stab me" Matt warned Allen with a grin. "It won't end well for you." Allen didn't listen and as Matt finished speaking he stabbed Matt in the chest with the sword. Matt's eyes widened as the sword pierced him. His body then had pain running through his entire body.

Allen watched as the sword did its work but noticed that it was taking much longer to affect Matt in comparison to Tyki. Then Madness Aura began to pour out of the wound. Allen looked at the aura then looked at Matt. Allen's eyes widened as he saw that one of Matt's eyes became completely black while the other turned red and black. Matt then looked at Allen with a twisted insane grin on his face as he grabbed the sword piercing his chest.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 81 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as this one was a lot of fun to write. The castle ruins in this chapter are actually called Corfe Castle and it really seems to be an interesting looking castle.<strong>

**So in other news I will be updating Matt's bio soon to include what is about to happen in the next chapter. I am also preparing a new poll to go up so keep an eye out for that. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	81. The Face of Madness

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt held onto Allen's sword with his left hand, an insane smile on his face. Matt's Madness Aura was pouring out from where the sword pierced his chest and Allen could've sworn he could see the aura escaping his mouth and left eye. Allen was beginning to wonder what was going on when Matt suddenly bursts into a maniacal laughter. After a moment Matt's laughter immediately stopped and focused his entire attention at Allen.

Before Allen could react to this Matt kicked Allen in the stomach which sent him let go of his sword and go tumbling across the ground. Matt continued to smile as he pulled out the sword and threw it at Allen. The sword pierced the ground just barely missing Allen's head. Allen stood up and looked at Matt as he pulled his sword out of the ground.

"It's no fun if you can't fight back" Matt said as he laughed a little. Matt then charged at Allen who swung his sword creating an energy arc at Matt. Matt leapt high into the air, easily evading the attack and repositioned himself in the air to attack Allen. As he descended, Matt went into his ultimate form and a strange twisting aura began to appear from his right hand. Allen managed to dodge the attack as Matt struck the ground with his hand. The impact caused a large crater to form in the ground which surprised Allen. But he had no time to think as Matt immediately turned at Allen and charged at him again.

* * *

><p>Road and Tyki watched as Matt fought Allen with wide eyes.<p>

"Tyki, you don't think he has" asked Road

"It's hard to tell Road" said Tyki. "He's acting differently from the last time he lost his mind. We will simply have to wait and see."

"What are we supposed to do if it turns out that he has" Road asked, a bit worried. "We don't have enough people here to stop him."

"If he shows that he has lost his mind then we will have to improvise" said Tyki. At the same time Liza approached them with Lily and Jynx behind her.

"Everything has been taken care of in the village" Liza said to Tyki and Road. Liza noticed that they were watching Matt's fight. As Liza watched it didn't take long for her to realize something was different about Matt. "What's wrong with Matt?"

"We're still working that out" said Tyki. "But you need to be on your guard right now."

"Sure no problem" said Liza not questioning Tyki, she trusted what he said and knew he wouldn't say something like that unless necessary. Liza then looked back up at the fight going on.

* * *

><p>Allen was on the defensive. He wasn't able to get off a many attacks on Matt because of his erratic attacks, and the ones that he did didn't seem to have any effect on him. However all of his attacks were twice as strong as before. Eventually though Allen managed to dodge one of Matt's attacks leaving him wide open for a counter attack. Allen went to stab Matt but Matt pivoted and blocked the attack with his left arm. Allen looked at Matt, earlier in the fight, when Matt blocked the attack; Matt showed no signs of pain. Instead, Matt's smile only grew wider. Matt then pushed the sword so that Allen's attack would go past him. As Allen fell forward, Matt punched him in the face causing Allen to once again release his grip on his sword as he staggered backwards. Matt grabbed Allen's sword by the handle and twirled it around and stabbed Allen with it. Matt released the sword and raised his left hand to Allen's chest. Suddenly there was a loud bang and Allen was sent flying into the castle ruins. Matt then raised his left hand. The twisting aura in his hand began to form a strange orb-like form. Matt smiled again as he shot the orb at Allen. The shot sounded like a cannon went off and the orb disappeared instantly, the next moment a massive explosion went off. Parts of the ruined castle collapsed around the area Allen was.<p>

Matt continued to stare at the smoldering ruins, then he saw Allen weakly break through some of the rubble. He was about to go after Allen to deal the flying blow when he felt something tugging on his right hand.

"Daddy, are we going home now" asked Lily as she pulled on his arm. The others were walking towards Matt. Tyki watched as Matt just stared at Lily for a moment. Then his eyes widened as the insane grin reappeared on his face. Matt turned and raised his left arm.

"Lily, get out of there now" yelled Tyki. Liza, hearing Tyki's yell activated her innocence and wrapped Lily with her ribbons and pulled Lily towards her right as Matt shot an orb formn his hand causing a massive explosion.

"What the hell is happening" Liza asked Tyki as she held on to Lily.

"Matt's lost it, he no longer recognizes friend from foe" said Tyki as he stared at the cloud of smoke rising from the ground. Suddenly the smoke parted in an area and Matt was charging straight at Liza and Lily. Matt was about to attack them When Tyki hit him with his Teez blade which caused Matt to go flying into a ruined wall. Liza just stood there, shocked when Tyki checked to see if she was alright.

"Liza, you need to snap out of it. We are going to need your help if we are going to bring Matt back" said Tyki. Liza shook her head and looked at Tyki.

"Sure, but what do we need to do to bring Matt back?"

"I'm working on that" said Tyki. Just then Tyki was tackled by Matt. As they rolled, Tyki kicked Matt into the air causing him to land near Road. Matt immediately noticed her and went to attack her. Road dodged the attack which gave Tyki and Liza enough time to reach them. At this time Jynx was now watching over Lily as they watched this fight take place. They wanted to help Matt but couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not, not after Matt attacked Lily.

Matt went in for another attack against Road as Liza grabbed Matt's arm. Matt flung her off and went to shoot her with an orb. As he took the shot Tyki barely managed to redirect the attack. The orb ended up hitting near Liza which caused her to get blown back a little from the impact.

Tyki then went to restrain Matt but as he did Matt grabbed Tyki and kicked him in the gut. He used an energy blast to send Tyki crashing into a wall and then shot an orb at Tyki at him. The orb hit and exploded right where Tyki was. Matt laughed maniacally as he watched that area burn. He only stopped laughing when he felt several sharp objects hit his back. He turned around to see Road standing a short distance away with several candles summoned. Road didn't want to do it but at this point brute force was the only logical way to stop Matt. Matt charged at her as she shot the rest of her candles at Matt.

By the time Matt reached Road he had dozens of candles piercing him all over his body but Matt didn't seem to notice any of them. Matt punched Road in the gut which caused her to fall to the ground. Matt raised his hand and pointed at Road. Just then the twisted Madness Aura formed around his finger and then shot out at Road. The tentacle-like aura pierced Road's left shoulder which caused her to scream a little bit in pain. The aura retracted back to his hand and disappeared. The blood that was on the aura was now on Matt's hand which caused Matt to stare at it for a moment. He hesitated for a moment then looked back at Road and grinned. He raised his arm at Road again and this time an orb began to form.

Suddenly though the orb disappeared as Matt seemed to be in distress. Road looked behind him to see Tyki standing behind Matt, his hand in Matt's neck.

"Tyki, what are you doing" asked Road as she saw that Matt was in distress.

"Improvising" said Tyki as he suffocated Matt. After a moment of struggling Matt's body fell limp. Tyki released Matt and he fell to the ground unconscious. Tyki walked over and helped Road up before picking Matt up. Everyone gathered together before Road summoned her door back home.

The next day, Matt woke up in his bed. His head was throbbing and his body was sore all over. He went to get up but found that he couldn't move. He managed to lift his head to see that he was covered in restraints.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 82 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter as I had a blast writing it, though it did take me forever to write I must admit. I will be updating Matt's bio today to include what has happened in the chapter. Be sure to look specifically for anything marked "insanity" to find information, there will be 2 places, one in the abilities area and one in the general bio under the cursed arm. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**So a while back when I announced that Liza would be coming to the story I also mentioned that Matt would also be making a crossover into SpiderWraith's story Noah of Balance. Well as of the most recent chapter Matt has officially entered the story. While I would recommend you read the entire story, if you want to see that go check out her story. You can find it in my favorites. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	82. The Cursed Eye

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt struggled in his bed to move but the restraints around him were very tight and restricted almost all movement. Matt struggled for a moment more before sighing and giving up. He wondered why he was restrained; he couldn't remember much from the fight. The very last thing he could remember was being stabbed by Allen.

"So you're awake now" said Tyki. Matt leaned his head over and saw Tyki sitting in the armchair in his room. "How are you feeling?"

"T-Tyki" Matt said, confused. "What's going on? Why am I tied up?"

"First answer my question" said Tyki as he stood up and walked over to Matt. "I need to know how you're feeling."

"I feel fine" said Matt, still confused. "My body is sore all over, but other than that I'm fine. Tyki what's going on?" Tyki looked at Matt and smiled. He kneeled down next to Matt and Matt could hear the sound of clicking. Suddenly the restraints loosened and Matt shot up. Tyki stood back up and held Matt down with his hand on Matt's shoulder.

"Hold it Matt. You're not going anywhere at the moment" said Tyki.

"Then give me some damn answers" yelled Matt. Tyki stared at Matt for a moment then sighed.

"Fine, I take it you can't remember anything that happened" asked Tyki as he sat down.

"I can only remember to when Allen stabbed me" said Matt.

Tyki spent the next few minutes telling Matt exactly what happened. During that time Matt listened; wide-eyed in horror. Once Tyki finished he stood up and walked over to the small table next to the armchair.

"Did….did that really happen" asked Matt as he looked at his hands, a feeling of horror ran through his body.

"Unfortunately yes" said Tyki.

"What about Road? Is she alright?"

"She's fine. You injured her a little but it certainly wasn't a serious injury, though it very nearly became that way."

"Thank you Tyki" Matt said quietly. Tyki grinned.

"Not a problem. That's what family is for."

"By the way, did Lily and Jynx give you any troubles? I'm sure they didn't like the fact that you were attacking me."

"They didn't give us any trouble, though they are a bit mad at me for hurting you, the same with Road."

"Why didn't they attack?"

"They said something about sensing something was wrong with you. So they decided to allow us to handle the situation."

"Where are they now?"

"With Liza, she's keeping them occupied until you are better." Tyki then picked up a handheld mirror and walked back over to Matt.

"I still can't believe I would do something like this" said Matt as he looked down and saw a new scar running the length of his torso, a scar identical to Tyki's. "Great, just what I needed. A reminder of that fight" Matt complained.

"That might not be the worst of it" said Tyki as he handed Matt the mirror. "Take a look." Matt looked into the mirror and his eyes widened once again in shock. His left eye was still completely black, though his other eye returned to its normal Noah color.

"What the hell is wrong with my eye" Matt practically yelled.

"Don't know" said Tyki. "But that's what that eye looked like when you lost control so you now know why I'm hesitant to let you get up right now."

"Will it go away?"

"We're not sure."

"Damn it, I hope it does. The scar I can hide easily. This on the other hand I can't hide well."

"Actually, we have an eye patch here for you if you want to wear it" said Tyki as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a black eye patch and tossed it onto Matt's lap. Matt picked it up and looked at it. There was a red stigmata symbol on one side of the patch. Matt sighed and put the eye patch on. He then looked back into the mirror.

"It looks terrible" Matt grumbled. Tyki couldn't help but snicker a little.

"Yes well it will cover your eye so you don't have to worry about seeing it. Hopefully you won't have to wear it for long."

"Yeah, can I go now? I want to get some fresh air" said Matt.

"Sure thing" smiled Tyki. Matt stood up and left the room and headed towards the grassy courtyard.

Matt walked down the hallway and as he made a turn he bumped into Road.

"R-Road, what are you doing here" asked Matt, a sudden wave of guilt hit him.

"I was just about to go see Tyki" said Road. "He asked me to get this book for him" she held out a book for Matt to see.

"Oh, I see" said Matt. He hesitated a bit before speaking. He looked at Road and could see a slight Madness Aura residue from where Matt had stabbed her the other day. Matt placed his hand on the area of the wound. "Road, about the other day…." Matt began to speak but Road interrupted.

"It's alright Matt" smiled Road. "I know you weren't in your right state of mind when that happened."

"But that doesn't mean I don't regret hurting you" said Matt. "Even if I wasn't in control."

"Matt I said it's alright so stop worrying yourself" said Road.

"But" said Matt but was interrupted by Road poking Matt in the eye patch which ended up poking his eye. Matt took a step back and put his hand over his eye. "OW! What the hell Road? What was that for?"

"No reason" grinned Road. Matt was about to say something but Road cut him off. "Anyways I have to get going and bring this book to Tyki" said Road. "I take it that you being out here means you want to do something so I won't hold you up." Road then walked past Matt. Matt turned and stared in disbelief, but he smiled a little bit before continuing to walk.

* * *

><p>Matt finally reached the grassy courtyard in the abbey. Matt walked to the center and laid on the ground. He stared at the sky before taking off the eye patch which was bugging him. He tossed it aside and continued to stare at the sky. As he stared Majnun appeared standing next to him.<p>

"Nice eye" Majnun joked.

"Shut up" said Matt. "You're the last person I want to hear that from."

"Don't be that way Matt, I might be able to help you understand that eye" grinned Majnun.

"Do you" Matt asked without changing the tone of his voice.

"Not really, no" said Majnun.

"Typical."

"Well it's not like I had to deal with it. Unlike you I was actually careful about not losing control."

"I didn't mean to" Matt shot back.

"I know I know. But still I remember back when I was alive and the memories of the original Noah of Madness and I can safely say that out of the 3 of us you are without a doubt the most reckless of us, though the original did lose control once as well."

"Did he end up having the same screwed up eye" Matt asked, a bit interested though he didn't show it.

"Don't know" said Majnun. "But I can tell that this eye of yours has changed a bit, and I don't mean appearance wise."

"What do you mean" Matt asked, this time showing curiosity.

"Well I can't say for certain but I think it has something to do with that different form of the Madness Aura."

"That makes no sense at all" said Matt.

"I'm just telling you what I can sense. I think if there is something up with that eye we will certainly find out soon enough."

"You know I've been wondering for a while now" said Matt. "Why is it that at times you seem to act like someone who is actually smart then the rest of the time acts like a total idiot?"

"Well why are you a smart strategist but never once thinks before acting" Majnun shot back.

"Shut up" said Matt, looking away from Majnun who now laughed.

"We have the same answer you know."

"But let me guess you won't tell me."

"Not a chance" grinned Majnun.

"You really do suck sometimes." Majnun laughed a little bit before disappearing. Matt looked over to where Majnun once stood and sighed in relief when he saw that he was gone. Matt then stared back up into the sky and after a moment he fell asleep there.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 83 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as it was an interesting one to write. The most trouble I had was figuring out the new appearance for Matt's eye which will be called the "cursed eye"…seems to be a pattern on which side these "curses" keep happening on (not intended of course). Anyways that being said the chapter was interesting to write, and I hope you enjoyed it. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**So yesterday I said I was going to add some info about Matt's "insanity" to the bio. Well I did but I sort of updated it really late so I'm just saying now that it is up and I will be adding the cursed eye as well to it (hopefully quicker than I did with the insanity…). I am still working out the poll but should be ready sometime this weekend or early next week (it's going to deal with locations; I just am researching some interesting areas). Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	83. The Cursed Eye part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OCs **

Matt was still sleeping on the ground in the grassy courtyard when Road came walking out. She had been looking for Matt and this was literally the last place she expected to find Matt. She walked up to him and noticed that Matt was sleeping. She smiled a little and nudged Matt in the side with her foot.

"Hey Matt, time to wake up" Road said kindly but Matt continued to sleep. She nudged him a little harder. "Come on Matt, you need to get up" Road was now getting impatient. After a moment more she stomped down on Matt's stomach. Matt's eyes immediately shot open. Road then noticed Matt's left eye, she was caught off guard. She took a step back almost involuntarily. Tyki had told her but still, seeing that eye brought back the memories of the previous day, a day which she could forget.

"DAMN IT ROAD! WHAT THE HELL" Matt yelled as he shot up, clenching his stomach. Matt noticed Road take her step backwards and he knew why. He grabbed his eye patch and placed it back over his eye. As he finished adjusting it he stood up and looked at Road who had calmed down a bit.

"Sorry about that" said Road, looking away from Matt. "I didn't mean to take that step back."

"No it's fine, Tyki did something similar to me when I woke up" Matt smiled. "And besides, I would've probably done the same thing if I were you."

"But I didn't give you the benefit of the doubt. Tyki told me you were better, and about your eye so I had no excuse to do what I did." Matt looked at her and sighed.

"I said forget about it. Now what is it you needed me for so badly that you had to crush my stomach?"

"Oh right, some Skulls are here to examine your eye" said Road. "I was asked to go get you."  
>"Very well" Matt smiled. "So what are we waiting for? Let's get going." Road went to walk but as she took her second step Matt tripped her. Road hit the ground with a thud. She shot a glare at Matt.<p>

"What was that for" Road complained.

"That was for poking me in the eye" said Matt as he grabbed Road and began to carry her under his arm.

"What are you doing" Road complained again, this time kicking around trying to get free.

"Carrying you obviously" Matt grinned not giving the answer Road wanted to hear which resulted in Road punching Matt in the stomach which was still sore. Matt dropped Road and laughed a little. "It was a joke Road, calm down. I was going to put you down anyways."

"Well it didn't seem that way" said Road.

"Right well let's get going then." The two ended up pushing each other the entire time they walked.

* * *

><p>The two entered the medical wing of the abbey. There waiting for Matt was 2 Skulls. Tyki and Sheril were also there but sitting down at the far end of the room. There were also a few servants around, assisting when needed.<p>

"Welcome Matt, thank you for coming" one of the Skulls said politely.

"Well it didn't sound like I was given much choice in the matter" said Matt as he approached him.

"Well I'm sure you would understand why we have come" said the Skull. "We would very much like to do some research about that eye of yours. Of course the Millennium Earl also wishes to know about this as well."

"Fine, whatever let's just get this over with" said Matt as he sat down in a chair.

Matt removed the eye patch and the Skulls began doing an eye examination. They started with his right eye to see if there was any difference which there wasn't. After a few minutes, Matt was losing his patience.

"How long is this going to take? I didn't come down here for an eye examination."

"Relax, that was just a preliminary test" said the Skull. "We just needed to make sure your other eye hadn't changed in any way, which it hasn't. He signaled over a servant to bring him some equipment. As the maid walked over to the Skull, passing in front of Matt, his eyes widened. The Skull immediately took notice of this.

"Matt, is everything alright" asked the Skull. Matt rubbed his eyes and looked at the maid again.

"I…I see something" said Matt.

"What do you mean?"

"Around the maid, it's like a weird aura" said Matt. The Skull then began to write something down. Matt stared at the woman, surrounding her was a light blue aura. The next thing Matt knew the Skull covered his left eye.

"Do you still see it" asked the Skull. Matt stared at the maid but he could no longer see it.

"No, it's not there" said Matt. The Skull looked at the other who simply nodded.

"Right how about now" asked the Skull as he covered Matt's right eye. Matt's eye widened again. He could barely see anything. Everything was black and he could barely make out the objects in the room. However the light blue aura that surrounded the maid glowed intensely making her stand out from the rest of the area.

"I can see it again, but it's different" said Matt.

"How so?"

"Well everything is really dark, like wearing sunglasses at night" Matt explained. "However the maid stands out clear as day. What's going on?" The Skull looked back at his notes for a moment.

"Well it looks like your eye is definitely cursed" said the Skull. "But it looks like you now have the ability to see the auras of humans, or at least anyone without dark matter."

"So what does this mean exactly for me? Will it go away?"

"Who knows, not much is known about curses, but it seems like your curse came from a rather unique situation." The Skull performed a few more tests after explaining to Matt his theory and after he finished he stood up. "Thank you for putting up with that" said the Skull. "We will go over everything here and if anything significant shows up then we shall let you know."

"Thanks" said Matt as he put his eye patch back up, stood up and went to leave.

"Matt where are you going" asked Road.

"To meditate. I have a lot to think about right now and I just want to clear my head" said Matt as he left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt entered his meditation room. As he did Majnun appeared in front of him, a big grin on his face.<p>

"What's with that look" asked Matt.

"Oh not much but it looks like you've finally got hit by the Madness Curse" said Majnun. This immediately caught Matt's attention.

"What do you mean 'Madness Curse'?"

"Well it's not a curse so to speak, but it's something that every single Noah of Madness has had to deal with."

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier" Matt yelled. "Don't you think that this is something I would've liked to know?"

"I just remembered it myself" Majnun shot back. "I had forgotten because it's been so many years."

"So what exactly is this curse?"

"Well, every Noah of Madness has lost control at least once in their lives, I was no exception, and when we did we ended up with this eye, though it appears what it's ability is does vary a bit. Anyways I don't remember much still but I do know that the curse is more like an omen because it usually meant that we were slowly losing our mind again to our own madness."

"How long does it take for me to lose my mind completely" asked Matt.

"Don't know, both the original and I died long before we really felt the effects of that."

"So once again you're just telling me crap" said Matt as he sat down on the floor in the center of the room.

"I'm just going by the memories, I know that the original knew he was losing his mind after he received the curse but that was years after gaining the curse."

"Look Majnun, I don't want to hear any of this until you actually know what you're talking about."

"Fine be that way, ignore me once again" said Majnun as he disappeared. Matt shook his head, took off his eye patch and began to meditate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 84 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as I had a lot of fun writing it. I decided to use this chapter to better explain the eye before Matt returned to his fights. That being said, expect a fight chapter to be coming up very soon!**

**I will be updating Matt's bio to include more information about the cursed eye so feel free to read it. Also, if everything goes according to plan I will be adding a new poll onto my page. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	84. Not so Stealthy Mission

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

A week had passed since Matt woke up and discovered his cursed eye which was given the name the "Madness Curse" by Majnun. During that week, Matt had spent most of that time adjusting to the ability to see the auras of humans, which he couldn't fully do. In the end he chose to wear the eye patch most of the time until he could truly get used to seeing the auras. It was a sunny day when Tyki had returned from a mission of his own to find everyone missing with the exception of Sheril. He walked up to Sheril who had Lily and Jynx with him.

"Sheril, where did everyone go" asked Tyki as he sat down across from him."

"The Earl sent Matt and Road on a mission" said Sheril as he put down a book he was reading. "And before you ask Liza went with them, she said something about being bored."

"Interesting, I didn't know that the Earl wanted Matt to go on missions just yet" Tyki said, surprised.

"The Earl trusts Matt, he has mentioned that what happened was a forgivable act seeing as no one was hurt and given the fact that he was no longer in control."

"Well still I would've expected him to wait a little longer before sending him out."

"Actually, the mission was Matt's request." Tyki stared at Sheril, a bit surprised. He never knew Matt to request missions.

"That's…rather unusual of him, don't you think" asked Tyki.

"Perhaps, but I think Matt needed this to get his mind off of what happened. Who knows, maybe the mission will do him good."

"Maybe it will" Tyki admitted. "What was the mission he took?"

"A scouting mission" said Sheril. "The Earl wants to see if Matt's new found ability can help gauge the defenses of the remaining branches."

"I thought the Earl wasn't planning on attacking the branches right now" said Tyki.

"It doesn't mean that he can't check. If a branch has weak enough defenses we might be able to take it out without much worry."

"You do realize that this kind of mission requires some stealth. And none of those going there are exactly the best at stealth."

"It should be fine, I doubt they will get close enough for the Black Order to even notice they were there" Sheril reassured. Tyki however still had his doubts.

"Where exactly are they going" asked Tyki.

"The Black Order headquarters."

* * *

><p>Matt, Road and Liza crept through the woods as silently as possible as the approached the massive cathedral that was the Black Order headquarters. They stopped at the edge of the forest and looked at the Cathedral.<p>

"So Matt can you see anything" asked Liza.

"Give me a second" said Matt. He then lifted his eye patch and closed his right eye. The world around him grew dark as he now focused purely on the auras. After a minute of looking Matt finally spoke again. "It's hard to tell."

"What do you mean" asked Road.

"I mean that I can defiantly see some auras but the walls of the buildings are really getting in the way of me seeing anything."

"That or you're too far away" Road said straight to the point.

"That to" said Matt as he opened his right eye so he could see normally.

"I don't think we should get closer" said Liza as she stared at the Cathedral.

"Why is that" asked Road.

"I don't know. It just feels like if we got any closer they would know we are here and our mission was to see how many people defended this place without being caught."

"Oh come on" Road whined. "Getting a little closer won't get us caught. And besides if we are caught then I'm sure all the exorcists will come out to play."

"No, she's right Road. We aren't here to pick a fight."

"Just give me a minute, I'll show you" said Road as she stepped out of the woods.

"Road! Don't you dare" Matt nearly yelled. Road simply stuck her tongue at Matt and continued to walk out. She took maybe 10 paces towards the Cathedral before Road felt like she passed through something. She stopped walking and looked back at Matt and Liza with a confused. Suddenly an alarm began to blare throughout the headquarters. Road looked towards the entrance and saw several exorcists and finders running towards her.

"Damn it Road" yelled Matt as he ran out to help her. Matt reached Road just as the exorcists and finders did. Matt leapt for the exorcist that was closest to Road. Matt instantly turned his right arm into a sword and landed on the exorcist, stabbing him in the chest as he did. Matt then leapt off of the exorcist and spun around, swinging his arm at the same time which ended up cutting the head clean off a finder. As Matt landed on the ground he quickly knelt to the ground and slammed his right fist, which had reverted back to normal immediately after killing the finder, into the ground causing dozens of spikes to shoot out of the ground. The spikes impaled themselves on the remaining group causing all of them to fall to the ground. As Matt stood back up Liza was now arriving to them.

"Damn it Road, what did I tell you" yelled Matt.

"We" Liza corrected.

"Whatever" said Matt. "Either way, look what you did." Matt then turned back to the headquarters. Now he could see dozens upon dozens of green auras converging on them. Matt then made the connection that exorcists and finders must have this color aura. "We need to go" said Matt and he began to push Road and Liza away from the headquarters. Matt looked back and as he did he saw several needles glint in the air. Matt stuck his arm out behind Road and the needles accurately struck him from the palm of his hand to his elbow. Matt winced a little but for the most part ignored the pain. As they entered the woods Matt stopped and faced the approaching exorcists.

"Matt what are you doing" asked Liza.

"Holding them back for a little bit" said Matt. "Don't worry I'll catch up." Liza nodded and grabbed Road and nearly dragged her away. The last thing they both saw was Matt going into his ultimate form.

* * *

><p>Matt pulled out the needles then raised his right arm and focused. A large orb formed from Matt's hand. Just as the orb was about to grow even larger it immediately compressed into a tiny orb. Matt aimed it at the center of the approaching attackers then shot the orb. There was a large bang from when Matt shot it and when it made contact with the exorcists there was a massive explosion leaving behind a massive, smoldering crater. Matt smiled a little.<p>

"That was a bit of overkill don't you think" Majnun asked without appearing.

"Shut up" said Matt as he turned to run. As he did though more needles struck him in the leg which caused him to fall to the ground. Matt stumbled to get back up and took off running again. As he ran though he realized he was being followed on either side of him. Matt suddenly launched an attack at one of those who was following him, easily killing the exorcist.

After a few minutes of running and fighting, Matt finally seemed to escape those chasing him, and his cursed eye confirmed that. He found Road and Liza waiting for him just outside the town that was located near the headquarters.

"What took you so long" said Road as she summoned her door.

"Sorry, got held up longer than I anticipated" said Matt. "But I lost them so we can go now. Road nodded and summoned her door which they entered.

Once they returned back home Matt placed the eye patch back over his eye. As they walked Liza looked at Matt.

"Hey Matt, are you going to take those out" asked Liza, referring to the needles in Matt's leg. Matt looked down.

"Oh right, I forgot about those" said Matt as he reached down and pulled them out.

"So Matt, how many people were defending the place when they came out to attack us" asked Road a big grin on her face.

"Not sure, I didn't count" said Matt.

"But you had the perfect opportunity!"

"Yeah but I was busy fixing your mistake" Matt pointed out. "Which reminds me Road, because of that I'm not giving you any candy for the rest of the week."

"Oh come on! That's not fair at all" Road whined. Matt simply laughed as the three walked through the abbey.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 85 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter as it was interesting for me to write. I was planning on doing something like this for a while now but never got around to it so I was glad to finally write it. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok I have a few things I need to say. First off, Matt will be in another crossover with the story "The Caretaker" by SeleneDominant. I would highly recommend reading her story, you can find it on my favorites or simply look it up on your own (your choice). **

**Also! I will be making a fairly big announcement of a little "sequel" to the Shadow of Madness story! Check my page for more info on it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	85. Searching for Bookman

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Two days had passed since Matt, Road and Liza returned from their mission. While as a whole their mission was a success, the Earl was disappointed to hear that Matt's new eye couldn't accurately gauge the number of people defending the headquarters. Matt had finally adjusted to his eye and now was comfortable with seeing people's auras, at least in small amounts. It was early in the morning when Matt was sitting in an armchair in his room reading a book. Jynx was in her cub panther form and was curled up on Matt's lap while Lily was still sleeping on Matt's bed. As Matt read his book he noticed Majnun form next to him.

"Great, what could you possibly want" Matt asked as he continued to read his book, he really didn't want to speak to Majnun at the moment.

"What, can't I come out and talk to you at times" Majnun asked innocently as he sat down on Jynx's bed.

"No" Matt simply said as he continued to read.

"Oh that's mean Matt, why would you say that to me" said Majnun who was trying to act innocently but a grin could be clearly seen on his shadowy face.

"Because for the most part you have nothing good to say at all" said Matt.

"What can I say, I'm bored" Majnun admitted. "I never get to do anything anymore and you haven't really asked for much help either."

"It's not like you would teach me much anyways" said Matt.

"I taught you that little ability you used the other day" Majnun pointed out.

"Yeah and the moment I used it you complained that it was overkill."

"Well you have to admit, you said you were just delaying them. That doesn't usually mean using one of your more powerful abilities on them."

"Did I slow them down or not?"

"I suppose you did, but still you have other abilities that are more than capable of slowing them down."

"Don't care. If I wanted to use another ability I would have" said Matt. Majnun laughed a little.

"True enough but still show some restraint will you?"

"And why should I" asked Matt.

"No reason in particular. But you shouldn't go revealing all of your cards to your enemies every single time you fight."

"But it's no fun if I can't use my new abilities" Matt complained. Just then he noticed that Jynx was staring at him with a confused look on her face. She couldn't hear Majnun so to her Matt was simply arguing with himself. Matt smiled and pats her on the head, which she greatly enjoyed. "Don't worry Jynx, I'm not crazy, I'm just having the unfortunate pleasure of talking to my Noah memories. He is rather annoying" Matt grinned.

"Hey" Majnun complained.

"If you could see him you would agree with me." Just then Matt noticed a bluish aura walking down the hallway. One thing Matt discovered was that at close enough range he could easily see auras that are obstructed. The aura stopped in front of his room and began to make a motion as if to knock on the door. "What is it" Matt asked before that could happen.

"Forgive me for disturbing you at this hour" said a maid through the door.

"It's alright you may enter" said Matt. A moment later the maid was now in the room facing Matt.

"Again, forgive me for disturbing you at this hour but your father wishes to speak to you" said the maid.

"Can't it wait" Matt asked. "I really don't want to do anything for at least a few hours."

"Lazy" Majnun muttered. Matt shot a glare at him which made Majnun laugh.

"Unfortunately no master" said the maid, not noticing Matt's glare. "He said it was urgent to speak to you."

"Did he happen to mention what was so important" Matt asked in curiosity.

"He mentioned something about a mission I believe" said the maid. Matt let out a sigh; he wasn't really in the mood for a mission. Sure he requested the last one but that was because he was on edge and needed to get his mind off of everything that had happened.

"Very well, I'll go talk to him now" said Matt as he carefully lifted Jynx off of him and placed her on her bed. Jynx stirred a bit showing that she had also fallen asleep after Matt had spoken to her. "Can you watch after them" Matt asked the maid.

"Of course."

"Thank you" said Matt as he left his room.

* * *

><p>Matt entered Sheril's office. When he entered Sheril immediately looked up and smiled.<p>

"Thank you for coming so early Matt" said Sheril.

"It's fine. It's not like I was doing anything anyways" said Matt. "So what is it you need me for? I heard that there is a mission you need me to go on."

"As a matter of fact, yes" said Sheril. "And this one is a very important mission."

"Is that so? What could it be" Matt asked.

"Well as you know, we have stopped out attacks on the branches to recover the information on the original cube of innocence. However, the Earl still believes that the cube holds valuable information regarding the new cube that was discovered a while back."

"So what are we supposed to do?"

"Well, you are to go find Bookman and bring him to the Earl for interrogation" said Sheril.

"Alright then, where can I find him?"

"Well he is in China at the moment on a mission to collect some innocence with a few other exorcists. And this is why it is so urgent for you to get out there. We had only found this information out overnight."

"Where in China are they?"

"They are searching for innocence in a ruined part of the Great Wall of China" said Sheril. "An ark gate will take you to their relative location."

"Seems like an odd place to find innocence" Matt pointed out.

"Yes well the locals in the area have for years reported supernatural occurrences which is why the Black Order believes that there is innocence buried somewhere in that area."

"Right, who's going with me on this one?"

"Tyki will be accompanying you for this mission. He is already waiting for you at the ark gate." Matt nodded and left.

Before Matt left he grabbed one of his long, black coats for the mission. When he reached the courtyard Tyki smiled.

"Took you long enough" Tyki teased.

"Yeah, yeah let's get going Tyki, we should get this one done as fast as possible" said Matt as he approached Tyki.

"Not wearing your eye patch for the mission?"

"No need. It's not like we are going through any villages or anything anyways" said Matt.

"Suit yourself" said Tyki as they walked through the ark gate.

* * *

><p>Tyki and Matt arrived on part of the Great Wall. Matt scanned the area in search for the exorcists' auras.<p>

"See them" asked Tyki.

"I think so" said Matt as he stared off down on part of the wall. "I will need to get closer in order to tell for sure." Tyki nodded and the two took off in the direction Matt was mentioning. After about a minute of navigating the ruined part of the wall Matt finally could see the auras clearly.

"Yep that's them alright. There are 6 of them" said Matt then he noticed a second group a short distance behind them. "Scratch that, looks like there's more on the lines of 15. Although some of them are merely finders I think."

"Can you tell which is which?"

"No, but I do know that they are heading up to the next guard tower. That must be where the innocence is."

"Right, let's go greet them then" Tyki grinned. Matt grinned back and the two took off.

Bookman, Lavi, as well as 2 other exorcists and finders were approaching the wall. As they did however they noticed two human shadows looming down on them. They looked up with wide eyes. Matt and Tyki were standing on the edge of the wall looking down on them.

"Sorry to bother you two" said Matt referring to Bookman and Lavi, completely ignoring the others there. "But you will be coming with us now."

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 86 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as I had an absolute blast writing it. This will be the first in a multi-chapter arc. (How many chapters has yet to be decided though.) Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**Ok so yesterday I mentioned that Matt would be in a crossover with the story "The Caretaker" by SeleneDominant. If you haven't gone and read it I would highly recommend that you do. However, if you are wondering when exactly Matt will be in the story, he first appears in the 20****th**** chapter, and I have been told that there is more to come after this chapter! So please go check out the story. You can find it on my favorites or you can simply search for it.**

**Speaking of things I said yesterday, I added an announcement to my page. For those who haven't read it, I have announced that I will be writing a new story that is based off of the Shadow of Madness story called Betrayal of Madness (name is still a work In progress…). You can go to my page to get information on it, as well as an early idea of what the story will be about. Be sure to check in all the time as I will be updating my page with more information and ideas about the story! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	86. Skirmish at the Great Wall

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt and Tyki looked down at the exorcists and finders that were standing below in the forest that went up to the wall.

"What do you want" Lavi asked as he yelled up to them.

"The Lord Millennium has requested your presence as bookmen" said Matt. "It would be in your best interest if you come quietly and without incident."

"Don't do it" said one of the exorcists that were with the bookmen. "It's obviously some sort of trap."

"Quiet boy" said Bookman as he stared at Matt with a serious look. "Tell me Noah of Madness, what does the Earl want with me?"

"He want's access to your archives. As for what he is looking for, well you will have to find out for yourself" Matt smiled. Bookman stood there silently.

"Old man, don't tell me that you're considering accepting the invitation and helping them" Lavi whispered.

"Quiet you fool" said Bookman. "I have made no such decision yet." Just as he said this, a bright green arrow shot out from further in the woods and struck Matt in the heart. Matt stared at the arrow with wide eyes as he slumped over and fell off the wall. Everyone was a bit shocked at what had just happened as they watched Matt fall. However as soon as Matt made contact with the ground he shattered into thousands of pieces. Tyki, who was watching from above, gave a sigh of relief; he wished that Matt had told him he was up to something.

"What's going on? Where's Matt" asked one of the exorcists, who was frantically looking around for him.

"Calm down Gregory" said Bookman. "If his target was us then we would have been dead already." As he finished speaking he heard someone walking up from behind them. Everyone turned around to see Matt walking up behind them as he dragged an exorcist along the ground by the back of their coat. The shimmering blood trail on the ground was evidence enough that Matt was dragging a corpse.

"You wouldn't believe who I found in the woods" Matt said in a friendly tone as he tossed the body in front of them. One of the finders threw up when he saw the dead exorcist's skewered body. Matt looked at the finder. "Must be either the first time you've seen someone die or this is your first mission" grinned Matt. "I must admit, he was very rude. Shooting my clone like that.

"Tell me, when did you replace your body with that clone" asked Bookman.

"Before you ever noticed us" said Matt. "I noticed that exorcist lurking in the shadows a while back." Matt then pointed to his left eye and grinned. "Now, will you come with us, or not?"

"You son of a bitch" yelled Gregory. "You're going to pay for that." Gregory went to activate his innocence but then felt a sharp pain. He looked behind him to see Tyki standing there, removing his hand from his back. The exorcist then felt a sudden pain and fell to the ground.

"Always keep an eye on all of your enemies" grinned Tyki as a teez came out of the exorcist and entered Tyki's hand.

"No fair Tyki, I wanted to kill him" Matt complained, but still had a grin on his face.

"You can have the next one" said Tyki. In the middle of the conversation Bookman, Lavi and the remaining exorcist activated their innocence while one finder pulled out his weapon while the other got on a phone that was attacked to his bag.

"Tyki, let's finish up here before the others show up" said Matt as he then charged at the other exorcist. The exorcist carried a hand blade on his left hand and a metal glove on his right. Matt turned his arm into a sword and struck at the exorcist who deflected the attack before taking a quick swing at Matt who ducked and jumped out of the way. After Matt jumped back he immediately lunged at exorcist. The exorcist swung at Matt but he once again ducked, but this time he spun around and kicked the exorcist in the gut, sending him flying into the wall. Matt the stood up and went after the exorcist.

* * *

><p>At the same time Tyki watched the little fight break out. He then turned back to see that Lavi was now attacking him with his hammer. Tyki jumped out of the way and created a teeze blade on his arm before attacking Lavi. Bookman, who watched Lavi attack Tyki turned his attention to Matt.<p>

Matt went to stab the exorcist that was leaning up against the wall, but he blocked the attack with his metal glove. Immediately Matt went to grab the exorcist's head but the exorcist used his blade to stop Matt's left hand. The two were now in deadlock with neither being able to budge the other.

"Well this is interesting" grinned Matt.

"Looks like we're evenly matched here" said the exorcist. Matt frowned and immediately a stone spike rose out from the ground and pierced the exorcist in the stomach. From that one spike, several more branched out and stabbed him all over his body, killing the exorcist. The spikes retracted back into the ground and the body slumped to the ground, a pool of blood beginning to form.

"No, we're not" said Matt.

As Matt stared at the body he felt several needles puncture his stone armor. Matt turned around to see Bookman attacking him.

"Looks like I was too late" said Bookman.

"To be honest, there wasn't much you could've done to help him" said Matt as he completely turned around to face Bookman. "And I take it from your last attack that you aren't going to come quietly" Matt asked. Bookman said nothing but recalled his needles. As the needles left Matt's back, Matt winced in a little pain. Then he saw Bookman prepare for another attack. As Bookman shot all of his needles at Matt, Matt surrounded himself with stone walls. The needles impaled on the walls and as soon as they finished sticking Matt destroyed the walls and attacked Bookman. Matt tried to punch Bookman but he easily dodged the attack. Matt then went to grab him but as he did, Bookman recalled the needles to form a barrier around himself. Matt's right hand was skewered by the needles that protected Bookman and he pulled back, holding onto his hand.

"Damn it" Matt muttered to himself. He then glared at Bookman and had a stone hand grab him and throw him into the wall. Bookman had the wind knocked out of him on impact and was about to fall over until Matt grabbed him by the neck and held him up against the wall.

"You stupid old man, I'm going to enjoy killing you" Matt gave an open grin. Bookman looked at Matt and noticed that Matt's Madness Aura was flowing out of his mouth like smoke. Matt turned his right arm into a sword and aimed it at Bookman. He was about to stab him when Tyki arrived with a defeated Lavi being dragged half-conscious behind him.

"Matt, don't forget we need him alive" said Tyki. Matt blinked his eyes a few times then quickly shook his head. Bookman noticed that the Madness Aura had stopped flowing from his mouth. Matt looked at Bookman with a confused look, then it clicked for him.

"Don't you dare speak of this Bookman, or you'll regret it" Matt threatened then threw Bookman across the ground. Bookman rolled across the ground and when he stopped Matt grabbed him and began to drag him.

"Let's get out of here, their friends will be showing up any second" said Matt. An ark gate opened and Tyki and Matt entered, each dragging one of the Bookmen through.

A few minutes passed and 5 exorcists and 3 finders arrived at the small battlefield to find everyone there dead. The searched around but could not find any sign of Bookman and Lavi or any trace of where they went.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 87 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as this one was fun to write. So at this point, this arc looks to be a 3 chapter arc; with this being the middle chapter. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**No big announcements right now other than what I've mentioned the past few chapters. Oh wait, there is one…now I know I said I was going to do a sequel of sorts of Shadow of Madness and that is still true (information of it can be found on my page). However, I will be making an official sequel to Shadow of Madness. I have a way the story can end so if and when the story comes to that point have no fear as there will be a sequel :D (I'm not saying that this one is anywhere near finished of course…just mentioning future plans). I won't add anything to the page about it as it will contain major spoilers….then again; the summary of the other sequel has a major spoiler in it….oh well. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	87. Interrogation

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, Just the OC's**

Tyki and Matt led Bookman and Lavi into a large room in the Ark. Bookman instantly recognized it as the same room he was in when Sheril questioned him about the 14th. Tyki motioned for them to sit in the large armchairs in the room. Bookman quietly sat down while Lavi hesitated a little. Though it was only for a split second hesitation, Matt lost his patience with him and forced him into the chair. Tyki was surprised to see Matt act this way.

"So sorry about the fight earlier" Tyki said politely. "We had hoped for you to come here without incident but it appeared that conflict couldn't be avoided.

"So it would seem" said Bookman as he sat in the armchair. "Tell me, where is the Earl now?"

"The Earl will be here in a moment" said Tyki. "In the meantime please wait here." A level 4 akuma showed up behind Bookman and Lavi.

"Shall I watch over them my lord" asked the akuma.

"Please do" said Tyki.

"Wait, I'm still here" said Matt. "I can watch over them and you can go notify the Earl."

"I would like to talk to you for a moment" said Tyki. "Do you mind coming with me?" Matt nodded and followed Tyki out of the room.

In the hallway Tyki turned to Matt.

"Matt, what happened back at China" asked Tyki.

"What do you mean" asked Matt.

"I saw what happened. You were a moment away from killing Bookman before I showed up."

"It was all a misunderstanding" Matt lied, he knew that telling Tyki what really happened wouldn't do him any good. "I was just trying to intimidate him, that's all."

"Alright" said Tyki, believing Matt. "Just let me know the next time you decide to do that. The same goes for that little clone stunt you pulled." Matt laughed a little.

"I'll try to remember" Matt grinned. Tyki shook his head.

"Right, I'll go let the Earl know, just watch them and don't do anything reckless."

"Oh come on Tyki, when have I ever done something reckless" Matt asked with a grin.

"Do I really need to answer that?"

"Ouch" said Matt. "No I suppose not, just hurry up." Tyki nodded and walked off. Matt reentered the room Bookman and Lavi were in.

As Matt approached them Bookman gave Matt a curious look.

"That was awfully fast" said Bookman.

"Not particularly" said Matt. "Tyki just needed to talk to me about something; he's going to inform the Earl of your arrival as we speak." Matt took a seat across from them.

"So are you finally going to tell me why you have brought me here" asked Bookman.

"If I remember correctly, I believe I told you that the Earl will tell you" said Matt. "I'm surprised to see you so impatient Bookman. This is something I would've expected from your apprentice, not you."

"Well you must forgive me then" said Bookman. "That was not meant to sound impatient."

"Sure it wasn't" said Matt.

"That eye of yours, you received that back when you fought Allen if I'm not mistaken" said Bookman as he stared at Matt's eye.

"How do you know when I received this" Matt asked curiously.

"Allen himself told me when he was returned to the headquarters not that long ago."

"So he survived" Matt asked, even though Bookman gave him the answer.

"Yes, he was found in very bad shape and he wasn't able to be safely transported back to headquarters until just recently."

"I see" said Matt.

They sat there for a few silent minutes until the door opened to the room and the Millennium Earl walked in. Matt stood up to allow the Earl to sit.

"Welcome, welcome" the Earl said warmly. "It has been such a long time since we actually have seen each other hasn't it Booman?" The Earl took a seat.

"It has" said Bookman. The Earl then noticed the bruised state of both Bookman and Lavi.

"What has happened to you? Don't tell me Matt and Tyki were rough on you. I specifically told them to avoid conflict and hurting you two."

"They attacked first my lord" said Matt, defending himself. The Earl looked at Bookman for confirmation.

"It is true" said Bookman. "The exorcists that were with us attacked first and we were caught up in the battle."

"I see, well I am truly sorry nonetheless."

"Tell me, what is it you have called me here for?"

"I assume you already know" said the Earl.

"I have an idea, yes. You want to know what was written on the original cube don't you?"

"That is correct" said the Earl.

"Well unfortunately I cannot help you there" said Bookman. The Earl tilted his head in confusion.

"Why not" asked the Earl. "You are a neutral group. You only joined the Black Order to aid you in recording history. So I see no problem in you helping us."

"You should know that because we are neutral we cannot interfere with anything. The fact that I know what is written on the cube is information recorded specifically for the sake of history. If I were to tell you then I would be aiding you in your mission." Matt couldn't take what he was hearing. He raised his hand and a stone spike shot out and impacted on the side of the armchair Bookman was sitting in, just missing his head.

"Damn it! Tell us what we want to know" yelled Matt.

"Matt! Stop this at once" said the Earl. "Go and take a step outside to clear your head. I will talk to Bookman here. Once you have finished I will need you for a few minutes." Matt looked at the Earl a bit surprised at what the Earl was saying to him. But after a moment Matt sighed and nodded. Matt immediately left the room after.

* * *

><p>Matt left the room and leaned up against the wall. As he did he saw Majnun appear in front of him, a large grin on his face.<p>

"Looks like you screwed up this time" Majnun teased.

"Shut up" said Matt as he slid to the ground. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his eye patch. Majnun was a bit surprised.

"I thought you left that at home."

"No, I brought it with me just in case" said Matt as he placed it on.

"So why are you wearing it now?"

"I don't know. My eye is bugging me so I wanted to give it some rest. As Matt finished putting it on he felt a little relief. His eye had been hurting ever since he pinned Bookman against the wall. Matt rubbed the eye patch as he traced the stigmata symbol that was on the patch.

"Matt, you know I'm not really one for helping you in trivial matters."

"Or anything for that matter" Matt interrupted.

"Yes well hear me out here" said Majnun. "Matt, you need to gain some self-control here. The few weeks after losing your mind is a very dangerous period for you."

"Why is that" asked Matt.

"Because during that time your mind is still recovering and you are prone to losing your mind very easily. Today was evidence of that. If Tyki hadn't called out to you at that moment you may have completely lost it again."

"You don't need to tell me" said Matt in an angry tone. "I am aware of what could happen."

"You do realize that you are also acting a bit colder than usual."

"What would know of it?"

"Matt, I live inside your mind, I know these things" Majnun pointed out.

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Because my goal right now is keeping you alive" said Majnun. "Isn't that why you released me from my prison?"

"Indeed it was" Matt smiled, the anger gone from his voice.

"Just remember the reasons why you wanted this power in the first place. Don't let the madness consume you like it has done to me and the original."

"Wait I thought you said that you both died before the so called Madness Curse could set in."

"True, but by that point we had both already been partially consumed by madness. The curse didn't have much effect because we were already losing our mind beforehand." Matt stared at Majnun not believing what he was hearing. Matt then laughed a little.

"Damn" said Matt.

"What" Majnun asked in confusion.

"Nothing, I just realized that for once you actually helped me without giving me a new ability" Matt grinned. "I don't think I like this."

"Yeah, yeah say what you want" said Majnun. "I said those things to help cheer you up."

"And it worked. Plus my eye is feeling a bit better now that it has been covered for a few minutes.

"Don't tell me you were just cranky because your eye was bothering you" Majnun said in disbelief.

"Hardly" laughed Matt. "But it might have been part of it. I was mostly mad at myself for almost losing control."

"Yeah, don't let that happen too much" said Majnun. "It'll get more and more difficult to pull you out of it."

"I'll keep that in mind" said Matt as he stood up and reentered the room.

* * *

><p>Matt walked into the room to see only the Earl there. The Earl turned and smiled at Matt. Matt just stared in confusion.<p>

"Where did they go my lord?"

"Bookman and his apprentice have left" said the Earl.

"Were they of any help?"

"I convinced Bookman to divulge some of the information. Specifically the parts of the inscription that we hadn't been able to collect yet."

"That's great" said Matt with a smile. "How did you convince him?"

"Well we both agreed that giving us partial information was not really helping us. So he compromised. I just gave him some information for his history."

"What did you tell him?"

"Nothing important, only when we were able to recreate the Egg" said the Earl. "He had been wondering when we had finished that."

"I see. Lord Millennium, what was it you needed me for? You said that once I returned you would need me for something."

"Already taken care of" said the Earl. "I was going to have you escort them back to a safe location, but I instead instructed the akuma that was here to do it. Instead, I want you to take some time off."

"Why is that my lord?"

"You seemed stressed. I realize that going on missions just after receiving that cursed eye must be troubling. Plus I can only imagine that the eye itself is bothering you at times."

"It is" Matt admitted.

"Go, take some time off. Relax a little bit" the Earl said warmly. Matt smiled.

"Thank you my lord" Matt bowed then left the room to head home.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 88 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter. This one was a bit difficult to write, mainly because I didn't know how to write it until the last minute. Either way, I enjoyed writing it though. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok so there are 2 announcements I would like to make. The first being that Matt will be making yet another crossover (yeah, seems to be happening a lot recently XD). Matt is in the story Shiroi Tenshi vol 2 by SpiderWraith (the same author of Noah of Balance). I would recommend reading the story. In fact Matt has already debuted in the chapter. You can find the story on my favorites on my page.**

**The second announcement is that I have officially begun writing the story Betrayal of Madness! However, I will not publish the story until I have written enough chapters. I will keep you updated as things progress either here or on my page :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	88. The First Attempt of Relaxing

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt returned to Mont Saint Michel. He decided the first thing he was going to do on his little vacation was to go and actually read a book; something that he really never had time to do. As Matt walked into the library to pick up a few books he was surprised to see Tyki and Sheril sitting across from each other, playing a game of chess while Liza sat between them, watching the game. Liza was the first to notice Matt enter the room.

"Hey Matt how's it going" Liza asked with a smile.

"Good, I just got back from the mission" said Matt as he walked over and looked at the chess board.

"Did you just finish? Because Tyki got back a while ago" said Liza.

"So I've noticed" said Matt.

"Matt, why did you stay for so long" asked Tyki without breaking his concentration.

"The Earl asked me to stay and he wanted to talk to me after he had finished talking to Bookman" said Matt.

"Oh yeah, what was it he wanted to talk to you about" asked Sheril.

"He told me to take a vacation of sorts" said Matt.

"Seriously" asked Liza a bit surprised.

"Yeah, I was surprised to hear it myself, though I have no idea what I'm going to do now that I have free time" said Matt.

"Can't help you there" said Liza.

"Gee, thanks" said Matt.

"Not a problem" Liza smiled. Matt pulled up a chair to watch the chess game as well, completely forgetting about why he went to the library in the first place.

* * *

><p>After a few minutes of watching the door to the library flew open and Lily came running through the door, laughing with Road chasing right behind her. Jynx entered after them, though not running. This caught everyone's attention. As Lily ran she noticed Matt.<p>

"Daddy" Lily said happily as she ran over to him and climbed onto his lap. Matt smiled and petted her on the head.

"Hello Lily" Matt said as he smiled. "It looks like you are having fun." Lily nodded her head.

"Yeah, Road was playing tag with me" Lily said happily.

"Well I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. Hopefully you two aren't breaking everything you pass."

"No, we haven't" said Lily as she shook her head.

"A game with Road that didn't lead to massive property damage, I'm surprised" Matt teased Road as he looked at her with a grin.

"That only happens with you" Road shot back. "You're also the only one her that gets hurt."

"Gee, I feel so special right now" Matt said sarcastically.

"Well you should" said Road. At the same time Jynx walked over to Matt.

"Master, I have missed you" said Jynx as she put her arms around Matt's neck. Matt's face turned red a little, though not as much as it used to.

"How many times have I told you to not call me by that title" said Matt.

"About 43 times Master" said Jynx. Matt looked up at her in disbelief.

"You actually kept track?"

"Are you really that surprised" said Tyki.

"Shut up. Jynx, why did you do something like that?"

"I don't know" said Jynx. "Did you not want me to?"

"Well I wasn't expecting you to do that. You don't need to Jynx. By the way, were you not playing with Road and Lily?"

"I was but it sort of evolved into a game of tag between Road and Lily" said Jynx as she tightened her grip around Matt.

"Jynx, why are you hugging me right now" said Matt.

"Because I missed you" said Jynx. Matt realized as she answered him what her answer would be. Jynx then nuzzled her head against Matt which made Matt blush.

"Awww is Matt embarrassed" teased Road.

"N-no I'm not" said Matt, obviously lying. "I'm completely used to this by now."

"Oh yeah" asked Road as an evil grin came across her face. "Hey Jynx, why don't you give Matt a kiss seeing as he just said he's used to it." Jynx's eyes lit up, she turned Matt's head and kissed him on the lips quickly before Matt pushed her off a little. Matt's face was completely red now. He shot a glare at Road who was now rolling on the floor laughing.

"Road be kind to your brother" said Tyki.

"Aww, you're no fun Tyki" whined Road. "I was just having some fun." Road then grinned at Matt who was still collecting himself.

"I'm sorry Master, I didn't realize that what Road was saying was a lie" said Jynx.

"No, I had gotten used to some things" said Matt. "But Road made it sound like I had gotten used to everything and what you did was definitely one of those things."

"I'm sorry" Jynx said again.

"No, that's fine said Matt. I know why you did it and that's fine, just try not to do that again."

"Of course" said Jynx who was happy to hear that Matt wasn't made at her. She then hugged Matt tightly before letting go. After a moment Matt finally managed to collect his composure.

"Hey Road, remember how I said I wouldn't give you any candy for a week" asked Matt.

"Yes" Road asked, a bit confused.

"Make that 2 weeks" Matt grinned.

"What? No fair" yelled Road. "It was just a little joke!"

"So? It's my candy, I can so whatever I want with it" said Matt.

"But it's not fair! I don't want to wait that long!"

"Then maybe you shouldn't have tricked Jynx." Road pouted.

"He's got a point there" said Tyki after he moved a piece on the chessboard.

"Tyki you jerk! Why are you siding with him" Road asked in disbelief.

"Because he's right."

"You suck Tyki" said Road as she walked over to Sheril. "Father, can you tell Matt to give me candy?"

"Matt, please give Road candy" said Sheril, unable to resist Road's request.

"Not a chance" said Matt.

"I'm sorry Road, but it is his candy, he can choose to give it to you or not" said Sheril. Road was mad now. She grabbed one of the chess pieces and chucked it at Matt. Matt managed to duck before it got the chance to hit. Matt looked at the piece as it hit the wall and fell to the ground.

"Oh come on Road, there was no need for that" said Matt as he was turning back to Road. However as he did, Matt's eyes widened as Road's foot ended up kicking him straight in the face. The kick ended up knocking Matt and the chair over.

"Here we go again" said Tyki as he looked at the chessboard, luckily Road didn't take a piece that was in play.

"What the hell Road" Matt yelled as he stood up after helping Lily off the ground. Road laughed a little at the slight shoeprint on Matt's face. Matt in retaliation kicked the chair which slid towards Road at a fast pace. Road went to jump over it but her foot caught the chair which caused her to fall to the ground. The chair ended up hitting a bookcase which caused several books to fall out. Road summoned a few candles and threw them at Matt as she stood up. Matt dodged them and managed to grab one and toss it back at Road. The candle disappeared before it could even her.

Before Road could react again though Matt picked her up and threw her into the chair that was kicked by Matt. Road hit it which caused more books to fall and hit her on top of her head. Matt laughed a little as Road began grabbing books and hurling them at Matt. Matt dodged them but some of the books ended up hitting both Tyki and Sheril

"Enough you two" said Sheril. Both Matt and Road looked at Sheril, both in mid motion of throwing something at each other. "If you two are going to fight, do it outside." Matt and Road looked at each other and grinned. Road stood up and followed Matt out of the library. As soon as they did though the sound of conflict erupted again as it drifted off into the hallway. SHeril shook his head. "What am I going to do with them" Sheril asked himself. Tyki laughed a little.

"Relax, they're just having fun" said Tyki as they continued their game of chess.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 89 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as I had a lot of fun writing it. I do love writing Matt and Road fights, I always find it entertaining. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**Ok time for some news. I have finished writing the first chapter to Betrayal of Madness. However as I've said before, I am not publishing that until I have written enough. I am merely keeping you informed. In terms of when you can expect to see the first chapter published; expect it within the next few weeks.**

**Also, I have another crossover in the process of being worked out. Go to my page to see who it is with! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	89. A Strange Meeting

****I do not own -man, just the OC's****

The little fight between Road and Matt lasted about an hour after Sheril kicked them out of the library. Altogether though, the amount of property damage was low in comparison to other times that they fought. However in the end there was no clear winner though Matt defiantly walked away with more cuts and bruises than Road. In the end they settled their differences and Matt reduced the amount of time Road wouldn't get candy from him back to a week. Afterwards Matt returned to his room to get some sleep. When Matt arrived in his room he found that both Jynx and Lily were already in the room. Lily looked like she was ready to fall asleep.

"Tired Lily" asked Matt as he walked over and flopped onto his bed.

"Yeah" said Lily as she let out a yawn. "But I wanted to wait for you to come back before I went to bed" said Lily. Matt smiled at her.

"There was no need to do that Lily. Now go on get some sleep. Where do you want to sleep tonight?"

"Can I sleep on your bed" asked Lily.

"Sure, why not" said Matt. Lily smiled and transformed into a tiny dragon before walking to the front of Matt's bed and curling up and falling asleep. Matt smiled and rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. As he stared Jynx sat down next to him.

"Master, are you going to ask me where I want to sleep tonight" asked Jynx.

"I could but I think I already know the answer to that" said Matt. Jynx pouted a little and fell over and put her arm around Matt.

"Awww come on that's not fair. Why do you always play favorites with Lily" Jynx complained.

"I don't have a favorite" said Matt, trying not to upset her. "And besides you have a bed of your own."

"I still don't think it's fair" mumbled Jynx, still complaining.

"Yes I know but I'm in a good mood today so Jynx, where would you like to sleep tonight" asked Matt. Jynx's eyes lit up and sparkled.

"Can I sleep on your bed?"

"That depends. Will you be in your human form or panther form?" Jynx hesitated before answering.

"Would you prefer it if I were in my panther form?"

"Probably" said Matt as he sat up.

"Then I will sleep in my panther form" Jynx said happily though Matt could detect that she was upset a little.

"Thank you Jynx" said Matt as he stood up and went to the bathroom to get ready to go to sleep. After a minute Matt left the bathroom and turned off the lights in the room before climbing into bed and Falling asleep.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Matt woke up after a surprisingly good night of sleep. The sun light shined into the room letting Matt know that it was fairly late in the morning. Matt looked at Lily to see that she was sound asleep. Matt then looked at Jynx and shook his head. Sometime during the night, Jynx transformed back into her human form and she was snuggled next to Matt. Matt was careful not to wake either of his akuma up as he got out of bed and went to the bathroom to change.<p>

Matt left the bathroom and was wearing fairly casual clothing. Dark pants and a short sleeved shirt. Matt then walked up to his drawer next to his bed and opened it and pulled out a black glove and one of his eye patches with the stigmata symbol on it. He then put the eye patch on and then placed the glove on his left hand. Matt then walked over to his closet and grabbed one of his long coats, though the one he grabbed was rarely used so it didn't have many wear marks. He put the coat on and checked his glove to see that it was adjusted so none of his hand was showing. He then quietly opened the door to his room and closed it.

As he walked down the hallway he ran into Tyki. Tyki eyed him for a moment.

"Going somewhere" asked Tyki.

"I could ask you the same thing" Matt grinned.

"I'm going to see Liza" Tyki said quickly. "Now tell me, where are you going?"

"I'm heading to London for a little bit" said Matt.

"You've been to London a few times before. Why do you want to go back there" asked Tyki.

"No real reason, I just like the place" said Matt.

"Well, have a good time doing whatever it is you're going to do there" said Tyki as he continued walking past Matt.

* * *

><p>Matt arrived in London not long after he spoke to Tyki. The city was busy as usual but Matt wasn't expecting any less. He spent several hours just wandering the city. He looked at several shops though had no real intention of buying anything. He found his way to a few museums as well, but didn't spend much time in them. Finally though Matt decided to rest in a small café. As he ate some food, Matt took off his eye patch and closed his right eye. He focused on all the auras around him. As he did he heard Majnun's voice.<p>

"What do you think you're doing" Majnun asked.

"Just looking around" said Matt, quiet enough so no attention would be brought towards him.

"You should be resting that eye more, not staring into large crowds of people" Majnun said, sounding a bit upset and disappointed.

"Relax, I'm sure it will be found." As he looked around he managed to see a green color aura. Matt opened his eyes and looked around the area. He couldn't see anyone but that was mainly due to the crowds.

"What is it" asked Majnun.

"I think I just saw an aura of an exorcist" said Matt as he stood up and began to follow the aura.

"So the first thing you decided to do is follow that aura? Matt what are you thinking?"

"Right now? Not much" grinned Matt as he continued to follow the person from a distance, by following the aura. He saw the aura go into an alleyway and then get surrounded by several other auras. Matt picked up the pace a little and looked into the alleyway to see what was going on.

Matt was surprised to see that the exorcist was Lenalee and she was seemingly being harassed by what looked like some gang members. Matt then leaned up against the wall on the street.

"So what are you going to do" asked Majnun. "She is your enemy after all."

"True but still, hate to see something happen to her" said Matt.

"Big talk coming from the person who nearly killed her the last time you saw her."

"The situation was different then, I was ordered to do it and besides I'm on a break so I'm not fighting in the war."

"Do whatever you want to do" said Majnun. "But don't blame me if helping her comes back to haunt you."

"Gee thanks" said Matt as he turned and began to walk down the alleyway.

* * *

><p>Nobody really noticed Matt as he walked down the alleyway; they were all focused on Lenalee. Even Lenalee didn't notice until she heard a thud coming from behind her. As she turned around a blur blew past her. She looked down to see two of the gang members on the ground. She then immediately looked back to the other gang members.<p>

As Matt passed Lenalee, one of gang members rushed at Matt. Matt kicked the man in the knee pushing it back and breaking it. As the man was falling Matt grabbed him by the front of the shirt and threw him into two other gang members. Another man took out a knife and went to attack Matt from behind. However Matt dodged and the knife passed past his head, Matt grabbed the man's arm and broke it over his shoulder before kicking him into the wall.

Matt quickly took care of the rest of the gang members with the last one having his head slammed against the wall and implanting itself into the wall. Matt then looked at the shocked Lenalee. Lenalee looked at Matt and when she finally recognized it was Matt she was even more shocked.

"Not having much luck with alleyways" Matt asked a bit sarcastically. Lenalee didn't respond. "Yeah, neither do I" Matt laughed.

"Matt, is that really you" asked Lenalee.

"Well who else would it be" Matt asked.

"I'm sorry, I didn't recognize you with the eye patch."

"It's fine."

"Matt, why did you help me there" asked Lenalee who was truly curious about why Matt helped her.

"Because I'm in a very good mood and at the moment I'm on a vacation of sorts so right now I'm not your enemy" Matt smiled.

"I see" said Lenalee, who still wasn't grasping the fact that Matt, the one who had tried to kill her just helped her. Matt stared at the sky then pulled out a watch.

"Well look at the time" said Matt. "I have to be getting back home. It was a pleasure seeing you on peaceful grounds Lenalee" Matt said with a smile as he left the alleyway leaving a very confused Lenalee with a pile of bodies surrounding her.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 90 coming soon!**

**Ok so before I say anything else I have a very quick announcement to make. I will be expiriencing extremely bad weather (in the form of a hurricane) that may end up knocking out my power for a while. I should say now that if that were to happen I can't say when I will be able to upload again. So if I don't update tomorrow you know why. I hope you understand the situation and I will hopefully be able to upload tomorrow.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. This one was a bit tricky to write. Mainly because I was finding it difficult to find the right words. But I think it turned out well. Please let me know what you think of the chapter.**

**Ok so I have finished another chapter for Betrayal of Madness, but I am still several chapters away from being ready to publish.**

**So as I said yesterday, Matt would be in a crossover. And the story he would be going to is Fear of Death by Sixteen Moons Sixteen Years. I would recommend reading it :D You can find the story in my favorites. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	90. A Warning

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

A week passed since Matt helped Lenalee in London. Matt had spent the week travelling to several locations around the world, but mainly spent his time relaxing at home. Matt was reading a book in the library when he had the sinking feeling that Road was up to something. Matt stood up and walked to his vault to see that it was pried open a little.

"You have got to be kidding me" Matt said to himself in disbelief. Suddenly Majnun appeared next to him.

"You know what? I don't think that door is helping you at all" Majnun grinned.

"Shut up, you're not helping" said Matt.

"I'm just pointing out a fact here" said Majnun, a large grin on his face; he was enjoying this.

"Again, shut up" said Matt.

"What? Telling me to shut up won't work on me" said Majnun. "I'm trying to help you here. You need to figure out a new way to close that vault."

"You're not trying to help me; you're trying to annoy me."

"Is it working" Majnun with a grin.

"You have no idea" said Matt. "Let's just say, you're lucky you don't have a real body."

"Ha! So you're true feelings for me come out" grinned Majnun.

"No, I'm just saying that right now I don't want to put up with this and if you had a real body I would make you shut up by force." Majnun began laughing.

"Oh you are too much fun" laughed Majnun. "I can see why Road loves to tease and torture you."

"Oh yeah? Well don't get any ideas."

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Majnun said in an innocent voice.

"Sure you don't" said Matt. "Just leave me alone while I deal with this."

"If you say so" said Majnun as he disappeared. Matt then entered the vault.

* * *

><p>Inside the large vault Matt saw Road sitting on the ground with a pile of candy surrounding her. As she ate some she packed the pile into small bags. Matt loudly cleared his voice and Road was startled a little bit.<p>

"What do you think you're doing" Matt asked in a rather aggressive tone. Road looked at the candy she had in her hand and looked back at Matt as she put her hands behind her back.

"Nothing" said Road.

"Road what have I told you about breaking into my vault and stealing the candy" asked Matt on the verge of yelling.

"B-but it's been a week" said Road, giving Matt and innocent look. "You said I could have candy after a week."

"Yeah I did, but I also said I would get you it" said Matt.

Road paused before speaking. "I forgot" she said innocently, but was obviously lying.

"No, no you didn't" said Matt as he walked over and grabbed Road and began to drag Road out of the vault.

"Hey come on don't drag me" Road complained as she was dragged.

"Well, too bad you're being dragged" Matt grinned. Once they left the vault Matt closed the stone vault door. He then focused and the door disappeared becoming a normal stone wall. Matt then turned back to Road. "There, now you won't be able to get it" said Matt.

"Oh come on, you didn't have to do that" she complained.

"Yes I did, otherwise you would just break in again."

"No I wouldn't" said Road, once again lying.

"Sure, I'll believe that when I see it" said Matt. "But for now nobody but me can open the vault." Road pouted but Matt ignored it, even though he grinned.

"Tell you what, you can keep the candy you managed to take" said Matt with a smile.

"How do you know if I took any" asked Road.

"Are you telling me that you're denying it?"

"No…"

"That's what I thought. Now come on let's get out of here and actually do something."

"Like what" Road asked, curious to hear what Matt had planned.

"I don't know maybe go bug Tyki or something" said Matt as he led Road out of the area.

* * *

><p>After pretty much torturing Tyki and Liza, who was also there, Matt decided to go to sleep. The next day, Matt found himself standing along the wall at the bottom of the mountain fortress. As Matt was out there, he was busy practicing one of his newer abilities that Majnun had just taught him. He managed to use it when he was scouting the exorcist headquarters but when he did he felt a bit strange afterwards, so he was spending his time refining the ability. As he did Tyki walked up to Matt right as he shot another compressed orb into the water causing the water to rise high into the air.<p>

"Enjoying yourself" Tyki asked as he walked up to Matt. Matt turned and looked at Tyki.

"Sort of, I'm just practicing my new ability" said Matt.

"How's it going then?"

"Fine, I've learned that there is a limit to how often I can use it" said Matt.

"What do you mean" Tyki asked, confused.

"This attack uses a lot of energy for me and the stronger I make it the bigger kick back I get and causes internal damage to my arm" said Matt as he looked at his right arm.

"That's not good" said Tyki, surprised to hear this.

"Well it's not too bad" said Matt. "It looks like when I over use it I won't be able to move my arm for a little bit while my arm heals. But it only seems to last a minute or so."

"That actually doesn't sound so bad" said Tyki.

"Yeah, Majnun has mentioned that this ability is as affective by how much energy I put into it so the strength of the attack can vary. I still haven't pushed myself too far."

"Well try not to do that" grinned Tyki. "I don't want to go dragging you back up to your room." Matt laughed.

"I'll try not to" said Matt. As he said this an akuma showed up. Matt looked at the akuma with a confused look.

"Sorry to disturb you my lords" said the akuma.

"What is it" Matt asked.

"There is a suspicious figure on the mainland shore looking here." Matt looked at Tyki then quickly travelled to the front of the fortress. Matt took off his eye patch and closed his right eye and focused on the shore.

"Well, is it a threat" asked Tyki.

"It appears to be a lone exorcist" said Matt. Even though the person was a good distance away, he could see the green aura. "I'll go take care of this" said Matt.

"Be quick, high tide arrives in a short time" said Tyki. Matt nodded and leapt over the wall and landed on the ground and immediately began walking towards the person.

Matt placed his eye patch back on as he began to get closer. Finally, after a minute of walking he could make out who was on the shore line. He was shocked to see that Lenalee was standing there. As he got closer he ran up to her.

"Lenalee, what the hell are you doing here" Matt asked as he reached her.

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to thank you for helping me out in London" Lenalee said a bit nervously.

"Look Lenalee, you don't have to thank me for that. If I wanted thanks I would've asked for it then and there. Why would you come out here? You do realize that by coming here you could've easily been attacked."

"I-I know, I just wanted to tell you and to give you a warning as a sign of my thanks."

"A warning" Matt asked, a bit curious. "What kind of warning."

"The Black Order is going to try another attempt at reclaiming Mont Saint Michel" said Lenalee. "They want it back badly and to take you and the other Noah here."

"Thanks for telling me this Lenalee, but it's going to take a lot more than just some small attack force to even consider reclaiming this place."

"That's the thing, they do realize that and because of it they are sending as many exorcists as they can as well as an army of finders. Matt they are sending more than you can imagine to reclaim this place. They are also bringing siege weapons to deal with the walls."

"And all of this is true" Matt asked. Lenalee simply nodded. "You do realize that by telling me this, the Black Order would consider you a traitor."

"They won't find out" said Lenalee. "I just felt that this was the best way of thanking you."

"Well I'm sure there were better ways but thank you" said Matt with a smile. "You do realize if you are caught I probably won't be able to come and help you right?"

"Yes I know."

"Good. Well you should get out of here before the others back in the fortress begin to suspect something." Lenalee nodded and began to walk away.

When Matt arrived back inside the fortress Tyki greeted him.

"So why did you let the exorcist go" Tyki asked.

"It wasn't an exorcist just some person on a pilgrimage. He wanted to come here but I told him to leave."

"That was an awfully long conversation you seemed to have" Tyki smiled.

"Yeah well the idiot wouldn't take no for an answer" said Matt as two walked through the small village and back to the abbey.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 91 coming soon!**

**Before I say anything I should let you know that the hurricane will be hitting where I live today. I just want to inform you that there may not be a chapter tomorrow (or any set amount of days) because I may lose power…I apologize in advance and hope that I will be able to update soon.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as I did enjoy writing it. This one was a bit tricky to write but I think it turned out well. Please let me know what you thought of it.**

**Ok so this is a continuation of the announcement I made in the last chapter concerning the crossover for Matt in the story Fear of Death by Sixteen Moons Sixteen Years. Well Matt has officially made it into the story. I would highly recommend you go and read it. You can find the story in my favorites! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	91. Preparations

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

It was early the next day when Matt was eating breakfast with Sheril and Road. Tyki and Liza weren't awake seeing as it was still very early. As they ate Sheril turned to Matt.

"So Matt, I heard that we had an unexpected guest yesterday" said Sheril as he ate. Road looked at Matt with a curious look; this was the first time she had heard about it.

"It was nobody really" said Matt, not willing to say that it was Lenalee that he saw. "Just some random person on some stupid pilgrimage."

"So why didn't you just kill the person" asked Road.

"I felt that there was no need to" said Matt. "I just warned the person to walk away if he cherished his life. The guy seemed to get the idea and then left."

"I would've killed him" said Road as she picked at her food.

"Of course you would" said Matt as he rolled his eyes. Road just stuck her tongue out at Matt who ignored it.

"But still you have to admit it is very surprising that someone would even attempt to come here. I had thought that it was made clear when you took over that this place could only be accessed by a select few."

"Well it's not like I went and publicly announced it to the world" said Matt. "Of course people may not realize it. Few even knew that the place wasn't even being used as a monestary."

"Was that what this place was being used for before the Black Order seized control" asked Road.

"From what I know, yes it was. But once the Order took over they seemed to have removed those who once lived here and then used this place as a sanctuary for exorcists and finders."

"How do you know this" asked Sheril.

"I read it in some archived documents I found."

"Wait, where did you find those" asked Sheril.

"My vault was being used as an archive of sorts and when I was clearing it out I discovered it."

"Was there any other useful information there? "

"Unfortunately no" said Matt. "I think I would've said something if I had found something."

"That's true" said Sheril. The three ate in silence for a moment before Matt spoke.

"Father, I need to ask a favor of you" said Matt. Sheril looked at Matt with a confused and curios look.

"What is it?"

"I would like it if you could request more akuma to be moved here" said Matt. Sheril gave Matt a confused look.

"Now why would we need more Matt? Don't we have enough?"

"I don't feel as if we do" said Matt, who didn't want to mention the fact that just the previous day, was warned about an approaching attack. "And I would feel more comfortable if we strengthen our defenses a little." Sheril stared at Matt for a moment.

"Sure, I'll go and notify the Earl after I'm finished eating" said Sheril, a bit confused over Matt's sudden interest in the defenses of the fortress.

"Thank you Father" said Matt as he finished eating and stood up. "If you don't mind, I am going to meditate for a little while and I do not wish to be disturbed.

"Sure thing Matt" said Sheril. Matt smiled and left the dining room.

* * *

><p>Matt arrived in his meditation room and immediately sat down and leaned against the inside part of one of the pillars in the room. As he sat there Majnun appeared leaning up against another pillar.<p>

"Why didn't you tell them the truth" asked Majnun as he looked at Matt.

"I don't want them to know, not yet" said Matt.

"You do realize if what Lenalee said is true then they should be prepared for the attack."

"I don't want to let them know because of that very reason" said Matt. Majnun gave a confused look.

"I don't get it. Usually you will do anything to protect your family. But now, the one time you are told by the enemy that they will be attacking you say nothing. What's going through that twisted mind of yours" asked Majnun.

"I haven't stopped protecting them. Why else do you think I asked Father to bring in more akuma? I'm not speaking about this because I don't want the Black Order to think that their attacked was tipped off to us."

"So, you're protecting her" asked Majnun, referring to Lenalee.

"She took a huge risk in telling me that, the last thing I want is for them to find out about it" said Matt.

"You truly are a confusing one" grinned Majnun.

"Like you're one to talk" Matt grinned back.

"Regardless, if the incoming forces are as big as she suggested then it will take a lot more than just a bunch of akuma to hold them off."

"Do you forget the fact that there are 5 Noah here Majnun? Are you seriously that dense?"

"No, I'm just saying that I can assume you are going to use the akumas as a shield to reduce the attacking numbers of our enemies."

"Not quite" said Matt.

"What are you planning on doing?"

"Don't get me wrong, they will still be used as a shield, but I'm not going to waste akuma right away on this one, or at least not many." Matt then leaned his head back against the pillar. "Man, this is a crappy way to end my vacation." Majnun laughed and then disappeared.

* * *

><p>Four days had passed and slowly but surely over those days more and more akuma began to pour through the ark gate. Now, the entire village below was crammed full of akuma. Matt was walking around the village that day, looking at the akuma who were there. It was somewhat chilly that day so Matt was wearing his long coat. As he was walking he saw an akuma fly in from above. The akuma landed in front of Matt, a look of concern on his face.<p>

"What is it akuma" Matt asked.

"It's the Black Order. A huge army is heading this way" said the akuma. Matt's eyes widened, he didn't think they would show so soon.

"When will they get here" Matt asked, a sense of urgency in his voice.

"In a few hours I bet" said the akuma.

"Go and warn Sheril and the others. Tell him to also evacuate the humans here as well." The akuma nodded and flew up towards the abbey. Matt quickly ran up to the wall and stared at the mainland. Matt pulled out a pocket watch and looked at the time.

"Damn it, low tide will just be starting when they arrive" Matt said to himself.

"Then it looks like you will have to prepare accordingly" said Majnun as he appeared next to him.

"I am prepared, or at least as prepared as I can be with such short notice" said Matt.

"Looks like it's going to be big. Hopefully you don't lose yet another home" said Majnun.

"I'm not worried" said Matt. "The abbey is made of stone so even if parts collapse it will still stand."

"What about the village? Not everything is made of stone there."

"We will deal with that when the time comes, but until then we must wait."

A few hours passed and Matt continued to watch the mainland. By this point all of the human residents within the abbey had been evacuated and the rest of the Noahs were standing with Matt as they watched the massive army slowly approach them.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 92 coming soon! **

**Ok, so it looks like I'm in the clear in terms of bad weather now. I guess I just got lucky. But because of that luck Shadow of Madness can continue as normal.**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as it was fun to write. This was sort of the set up chapter to the battle to come. Including this chapter, my plans are for this to be a 3 chapter battle with a potential 4****th**** depending on how things go.**

**Ok so announcement time, I've added a progress bar of sorts on my page that will keep you informed on the progress of Betrayal of Madness. I will update that whenever I make headway into getting that story published. Once it reaches 100% then expect the story to begin publication! So go check out my page to see how far I am :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	92. The Battle of Mont Saint Michel part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt watched with the other Noahs as the Black Order moved to the edge of the mainland.

"That sure is a lot of them" said Road as she looked out.

"Indeed" said Matt. "More than I expected there would be."

"What do you mean" asked Road.

"When the akuma mentioned that they were coming I was expecting a lot less" said Matt.

"Matt, I don't think we have enough akuma to defend this place" said Sheril. "I think it would be in our best interest if we retreat."

"I think I may have to agree with Sheril on this one" said Tyki.

"No, I've been planning for something like this" said Matt. "We can win and the akuma can be replaced."

"What about Lily and Jynx? Can they be replaced" asked Sheril. Matt stood there silently for a moment.

"Of course not, the Earl wouldn't let me create new ones. And besides they are important to me."

"Then why put them in harm's way?"

"Because no matter how you look at it, they were created to fight. But I think you underestimate their strength" said Matt. "And really I think you're worrying too much. We will win this, and when we do, we will have inflicted a severe blow to the Black Order. It's a win-win situation."

"If you say so" said Sheril.

"I do, now I have some plans I need to go over."

"What plans" asked Liza.

"Something I've thought up a while back…just in case something like this would happen."

"Ok, what do you have planned?"

"It's simple. We need to spread out our forces and ambush them once they enter the fortress."

"Sure, I see what you mean" said Sheril as he thought about it. "How are we going to split the forces?"

"Well there are 2 entrances. One is right below us and there is also a larger, service entrance at the far end of the fortress" said Matt as he pointed to the entrance that was just a little ways away from where they were now. "Tyki and Sheril can guard there while Road helps me out here."

"What about me" asked Liza.

"That's right, I forgot. Liza, you stay close around here and Road can go to the upper level of the village." Everyone nodded and ran off to where Matt had told them to go. Before Liza went further down the wall she looked at Matt.

"I hope you know what you're doing Matt" said Liza.

"Trust me, I do" said Matt with a smile and Liza then walked off to a different part of the wall. Matt then turned and faced the mainland once again.

* * *

><p>Out on the mainland, hundreds of exorcists and finders were preparing for battle as a bunch or CROWS showed up with Rouvelier walking in the middle of them. Behind him were massive cannons brought in by the science division. The cannons began to spread out and set up across the beachfront, all aiming at Mont Saint Michel.<p>

"It is a lovely day for an attack" said Rouvelier with a smile. "Wouldn't you agree" he asked, talking to one of the CROWS.

"Yes sir" said the CROW. "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, why are we using so much of our resources in this one attack?"

"Because that fortress is the current home of at least 4 Noah" said Rouvelier. "Not to mention a fair amount of akuma."

"Right, but don't you think we've gone a bit overboard with this?"

"I know what these people are capable of; I've read all the reports. We have over 60 exorcists and nearly 200 finders here along with the science division itself in order to take out these Noah. We need to play it safe."

"I understand sir" said the CROW. As he said this another CROW walked up to them.

"Sir, the science division has said that all canons are in place" said the CROW.

"Excellent" said Rouvelier as he pulled out a pocket watch. "And just in time, low tide is about to start. When it does begin the attack." The CROW nodded and walked away.

A few minutes passed and the waters that surrounded Mont Saint Michel receded past the island. Rouvelier smiled as he signaled for the attack to begin. All of the cannons fired, sending massive shells at the fortress. The exorcists and finders then began to charge at the fortress.

"This will prove to be very interesting" said Rouvelier as he watched with great interest.

The first volley of shells smashed into random parts of the fortress and abbey. Chunks of rubble collapsed to the ground with each shot. Matt watched as the exorcists and finders were beginning their attack. Matt raised his right arm and as he did stone spikes formed on the outside of the fortress walls. Matt then waved his arm and the spikes shot out with great force at the attackers. Several finders and a few exorcists were hit by the spike volley and their bodies were nearly trampled by everyone else as they continued to move. Matt fired a second volley as they got closer and this time killed more but by the time they reached the fortress Matt realized that in the end he didn't kill that many.

It didn't take long before the attackers broke their way into the fortress and began filling the streets. Matt watched from above as they did and once there was enough inside he slammed his foot to the ground and suddenly dozens upon dozens of stone soldiers began emerging from the ground and stone buildings and began to attack the attackers. As they did this though the akuma entered the fight and began to attack as well.

After a minute of attacking, the rest of the Noah joined into the battle leaving only Matt to observe the fight's progress.

"Aren't you going to join the fight" asked Majnun.

"Not yet. I'm waiting for the right moment." Matt heard the sounds of cannons going off and before he could even see where they were going, the shells hit other parts of the village and walls. He watched as the stone soldiers and akuma were slowly being overwhelmed. Matt looked up to see some finders trying to get up a series of steep steps in hopes to enter the second level but Road was holding them off easily until a cannon shell hit the stairs and collapsed on the finders who were trying to get up it.

* * *

><p>Matt then looked over to the service entrance and saw that it was beginning to get overrun but before he could do anything the tower he was standing on began to shake then collapse. As it fell Matt leapt off of the crumbling tower and landed on top of an exorcist. Matt tumbled to the ground and as he stood up he managed to stab a finder in the back with his arm, which had transformed into a sword. As he did this a body fell from the sky and hit the ground. He looked up to see Liza fighting.<p>

"Liza" Matt yelled. Liza finished off her opponent before looking at Matt. "The service entrance is being overrun! Go there and help" Matt yelled. Liza nodded and took off towards the service entrance. Matt began to run towards the back of the fort along the main street when he reached the gate. As he approached a shell clipped the gate house and rubble came crashing to the ground. As that happened Matt dodged some of the debris before continuing to move forwards.

At the same time, Liza reached Tyki and Sheril who were fighting alongside the akuma and stone soldiers there. She created several orbs and killed some of the attackers to clear up the area surrounding them.

"Thanks Liza" said Tyki, but what are you doing here? I thought you were with Matt."

"I was but he told me to help you defend the entrance" said Liza.

"Well it's too late for that" said Tyki. "Sheril and I were about to fall back and help Road in the second level."

"Go ahead and do that, I'll hold them off for a little while" said Liza.

"I can't let you do that" said Tyki.

"It'll be fine" Liza insisted. "I'm only going to hold them off for a little while. I'll rejoin you as soon as possible I swear." Tyki nodded then gestured to Sheril to fall back to Road. The two took off down the path that led the second level. Liza then intercepted the attackers who were following and began to attack them.

It was around this time when Lily and Jynx entered the fight as well. Lily flew in the sky and picked up exorcists and finders, either crushing them or dropping them to their deaths. Jynx was pouncing on anyone she could get near and once she was on them it was a blink of an eye before they were dead.

Matt was heading down the main street heading to the back of the fortress when he was hit by something which sent him crashing into the building across the narrow street. Matt was in the middle of recovering when he saw an exorcist running towards him with what looked to be a large sledgehammer. The exorcist took a swing at Matt but he dove out of the way before the hammer struck him. Matt quickly rolled and stood back up. He was about to attack the exorcist when a cannon shell landed in between them exploding. Both Matt and the exorcist were sent flying in opposite directions. Matt skidded to a stop and slowly stood back up. He saw the crater left by the shell then saw that the exorcist was standing back up as well. Matt rushed towards him and before the exorcist could regain his composure Matt stabbed him through the center of his chest. Matt kicked the exorcist off of his arm and the exorcist hit a building wall and slumped over.

Matt looked up into the sky as more shells went crashing into the abbey sending rubble crashing to the ground. As he did though another shell exploded on a building near him and Matt was sent to the ground from the force and the debris that came from the house. As Matt stood back up he saw Lily flying in the air. He watched as she swooped down and picked up two finders and crushed them before dropping them. It was at this time he heard several more cannon shells heading towards them. He saw that one of them was heading straight for Lily.

"Lily, watch out" Matt yelled. Lily heard Matt and looked but as she did a shell hit her and exploded on her side. Lily let out a roar of pain as she crashed to the ground.

At the same time Liza was fighting off some exorcists on a path leading to the third level and the abbey's entrance. As she fought though she was knocked hard to the ground by an exorcist. The exorcist loomed over her as a shell exploded into the large abbey wall sending tons of rubble crashing down at them.

As all this was happening, Tyki and Sheril were fighting alongside Road on the edge of the second level when 2 shells exploded on the wall holding up where they were standing. The three lost their balance as the platform they were standing on collapsed into the first level.

* * *

><p>Matt rushed to get to Lily when he sensed that something was horribly wrong. He knew that things were going horribly at the moment. As he reached one part of the second level he saw Lily lying on the ground. He ran over to her but as he did he saw someone standing by her. His eyes widened with horror at who he saw.<p>

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 93 coming soon! **

**This chapter was a lot of fun to write but was also very difficult as well as I found it difficult to write the different battles going on. However I hoped you enjoyed it. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Also, in other news, I've updated the Betrayal of Madness progress bar…go to my page to see where it stands. I've also added a time table to give you a rough idea of when it will be published. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	93. The Battle of Mont Saint Michel part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt stared at the person standing next to Lily, a look of shock and anger across his face.

"Apocryphos, what the hell are you doing here" Matt asked angrily. Apocryphos looked up from Lily and turned to Matt.

"I've come to take care of you and the other Noah here" said Apocryphos. "After all, it's a rare sight to have so many Noah in the same place at the same time." Apocryphos then looked back at Lily. "So this is one of those 'special' akuma I've heard about. I must say I'm rather impressed a little. It's a shame that it couldn't do much." Apocryphos then kicked Lily and Lily let out a weak moan of pain. Matt was infuriated by this and he created a stone wall. From that wall dozens of stone spikes shot out at Apocryphos who easily dodged the attacks. As the last spike passed him he looked back up at the wall Matt was now standing behind.

"It's going to take a lot more than that to even hurt me" Apocryphos taunted, but as he looked past the stone wall he saw nobody was there. His eyes widened when he sensed that Matt was behind him. Matt, who was in his ultimate form kicked Apocryphos in the side which sent him flying into the side of a staircase that led to the third level. Apocryphos fell out of the wall and immediately recovered as Matt went in for another attack. This time though Matt tried to punch Apocryphos who blocked Matt's punch with is hand and used his other to punch Matt in the stomach. Matt stopped dead in his tracks after taking the hit and Apocryphos used the opportunity to grab Matt and slam him into the wall.  
>Matt fell to the ground but as he did several Madness Clones came out of the ground and began to latch onto Apocryphos. Apocryphos, not forgetting what had happened the last time, quickly threw the few clones off of him right as the exploded leaving impact craters in the surrounding area. However, Matt used the distraction to attack Apocryphos. Matt punched him in the face, but Apocryphos quickly recovered. He grabbed Matt and threw him into the air.<p>

Matt landed on the third level of the village, near the main entrance to the abbey. He rolled on the ground before coming to a stop.

"Matt, let me fight him" said Majnun. "You aren't strong enough to fight him, plus you are no longer at full strength from creating all of those stone soldiers."

"I can do this" said Matt as he stood up. "I can beat him."

"Matt if you fight Apocryphos you will die" Majnun said, practically pleading Matt to listen to reason. "If you let me fight then you will be able to fight another day." As he said this Apocryphos stepped off the stairs and started charging at Matt.

"I'm sorry Majnun, but I can do this" said Matt as he charged at Apocryphos.

* * *

><p>Liza began pulling herself out of a pile of rubble. At the very last second as the rubble came crashing down she was able to create a shield. As she stood up and stumbled out of the rubble. She looked back to see that the exorcist that was standing over her was crushed by the falling rubble. She then felt something on the right side of her head. She put her hand to it and felt something warm and wet. As she pulled her hand back she saw that her hand was covered in blood. Liza laughed a little to herself.<p>

"Damn, looks like I wasn't able to get the shield up in time" Liza said to herself. She placed her hand back onto her head where the blood was coming from and looked around. There was still a lot of fighting going on in her area, but for the most part the fight seemed fairly even. She then turned to face the village to see that smoke was riding from the first level of the fortress. She ran across the path and looked over. What she saw confirmed what she saw. Many of the buildings on the first level were engulfed in flames as more cannon shells slammed into them.

Liza then looked at the second level and her eyes widened. The entire second level was virtually destroyed and almost no fighting was going on there. She frantically looked around for any signs of Tyki and the others but saw nobody. She continued down the path, hoping to see someone as she was walking parallel to the main entrance of the abbey. As she was though a cannon shell hit one of the two towers on top of the main entrance and it quickly collapsed on where she was. Liza was able to jump back and avoid the rubble; however the rubble blocked her path.

It was at this time that Liza realized she needed to find Tyki and the others he was with. She worried about Matt but knew that he would be ok. She activated her innocence and flew down to the second level, hoping to find Tyki and the others.

* * *

><p>Apocryphos grabbed Matt by the shoulders and kicked him in the stomach, which sent Matt flying into the staircase leading into the abbey's main entrance. Matt wasn't even able to stand up before Apocryphos was practically on top of him and going to punch Matt while he was on the ground. Matt rolled out of the way and kicked Apocryphos in the back of the legs which made him fall to the ground. As he did though, a Madness Aura arm burst though the ground and grabbed Apocryphos and threw him into the main entrance and into the building.<p>

Apocryphos rolled across the ground before yet another Madness Aura arm grabbed him and threw him in the far wall near the entrance to the inner staircase which led to the uppermost level of the abbey. As he fell a few Madness Chains latched onto him and whipped him across the room, slamming him into several walls and other structures within the large room before on last slam into the ground before releasing him. As Apocryphos was slowly standing back up Matt went into another attack. He went to kick at Apocryphos grabbed Matt's leg and threw him at the side of the wall leading to the inner staircase. Matt clipped the wall and spun in the air before hitting the ground.

Because the inner staircase was outdoors and surrounded on either sides by wall Matt tried to use it to his advantage by summoning Madness Aura arms out of them, but Apocryphos either avoided the arms or destroyed them before reaching Matt who was now standing. A green aura appeared around Apocryphos' fist as he punched Matt in the stomach. The attack sent Matt crashing up the staircase. Matt was extremely slow to stand up and as he did Apocryphos grabbed him and threw him into the wall that faced the abbey and began to pin Matt to the wall while choking him.

"You really are a stubborn one" said Apocryphos as he chocked Matt. "But you should've called out your inner Noah to fight me instead. Matt struggled against Apocryphos' grip.

"I…don't need….him to defeat…you" Matt managed to say as he was being chocked. Apocryphos grinned at Matt but soon he heard the sound of another wave of cannon shells. He heard a few crash but one was still coming towards them, though he couldn't see where. Both Matt and Apocryphos looked up and saw the shell slam and explode at the base of the abbey's spire, leaving a massive hole in the structure's base. It stood there for a moment but afterwards the sound of cracking could be heard. Not long after the spire collapsed and began falling straight towards Matt and Apocryphos. Matt, in the distraction, managed to kick Apocryphos in the stomach which caused him to release Matt. Matt kicked him one more time before diving out of the way of the spire. The spire hit the side of the wall and splintered more as it crashed into the staircase.

Matt stood back up and stared at the now destroyed spire which cut off the inner staircase in half. Matt began to walk away, hoping to get a break from the fight as he was pretty beaten up. But as he did he heard the sound of rubble moving. He turned around and saw Apocryphos standing on top of the ruined spire.

"Don't think you've gotten rid of me yet boy" grinned Apocryphos as he leapt down and attacked Matt.

* * *

><p>Down on the first level, Tyki, Sheril and Road were laying on the ground amongst piles of rubble from where they were standing. Tyki was the first to get up. He looked around and saw that they were actually lying in the ruins of one of the first level buildings. He looked up to see the spire get hit and collapse to the side. He stood up and walked over to Road. He shook Road, trying to wake her up.<p>

"Hey Road, you ok" asked Tyki as he gently shook her. Road slowly opened her eyes to see Tyki standing over her. She groaned in pain before speaking.

"I'm not sure" said Road as Tyki helped her up. Sheril at this time also came too and stood up.

"It looks like everyone is alright" said Sheril as he looked at Tyki and Road who had several cuts and bruises across their bodies.

"It looks like it" said Tyki. "But now is not the time to worry about that. We have a fight to get back to." Sheril nodded in agreement and turned around towards the main street. As he did, they saw a level 3 akuma explode and several exorcists and finders ran up to the remains of the akuma. As they did they noticed them and quickly surrounded them.

"Stand down Noah" said one of the exorcists. "You can't do anything with all of us here." Tyki and the others didn't say a word as they knew what they said was right. Perhaps if they hadn't just fallen they may have been able to but not now. One of the exorcists was about to grab Road there was a loud growl. The exorcist looked at the side of the ruined building to see Jynx pouncing on him. Jynx knocked the exorcist to the ground and bit his neck and ripped out his throat. Tyki and the others used the distraction that Jynx caused to begin attacking those who had surrounded them.

Jynx managed to pounce on a few more finders and exorcists before finally being hit into a wall, breaking it, which caused her to slump to the ground. Before the exorcist that struck Jynx could finish her off, Sheril took control of his body and Tyki removed his heart. Tyki ran over to Jynx to make sure she was alright. He knelt down to see that Jynx was still conscious.

"Jynx, are you alright" asked Tyki. Jynx looked at Tyki and nodded which made him smile. "Thank you Jynx, if it wasn't for you we might have been in trouble." Jynx stood back up when they heard Liza calling down to them.

"Hey, you guys alright down there" Liza yelled from the level above them.

"Yeah, how about you" Tyki yelled back.

"I've been better, but I can still fight. Hang tight, I'm heading down to you."

"No" yelled Tyki. "Stay up there and clear out the second level."

"It pretty much is cleared" said Liza.

"Then go clean up the service entrance and the third level. We can take care of the first level." Liza nodded and disappeared from view. Tyki then turned to Sheril and Road and the three took off into the main street as they began to clean up the remaining forces.

* * *

><p>Matt was fighting Apocryphos in the main courtyard at the top of the abbey. The fighting was fierce but Apocryphos had the upper hand in the fight now and Matt was quickly running out of strength to fight. Matt made an attempt to punch Apocryphos but he managed to block the attack and kick Matt to the barrier at the end of the courtyard which was the only buffer between him and the cliff below. Matt used the barrier to help himself up. As he did he looked at Apocryphos with a large grin. This confused Apocryphos.<p>

"What's with the grin" asked Apocryphos.

"Nothing much" said Matt. "I was just thinking about how I was going to beat you."

"You should realize by now that you can't win."

"Well then come at me and prove me wrong" said Matt. Apocryphos took Matt up on this and charged at him. As he attacked Matt, Matt dodged the attack and kicked Apocryphos in the back which sent him over the edge. However as he did, Apocryphos grabbed Matt's leg and dragged Matt with him.

Matt was holding onto the edge with this left hand while Apocryphos help onto Matt's leg.

"Get off me" yelled Matt as he tried to kick Apocryphos off but to no avail. Then Matt got an idea. He aimed his right hand straight at Apocryphos and an orb began to form. Apocryphos' eyes widened.

"What do you think you're doing? If you attack me at this range, you won't be able to escape the blast."

"We'll see about that" Matt grinned as the orb continued to grow in size.

"Are you mad? You'll get yourself killed" yelled Apocryphos. The orb continued to grow then compressed itself. Matt grinned again.

"As a matter of fact, I am" said Matt as he shot the orb at Apocryphos. The explosion that ensued could be heard throughout the entire fortress.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 94 coming soon!****  
>I hope you enjoyed that chapter as I had an absolute blast writing it. Even though it took me forever to write I really found it refreshing to write such a long fight chapter. So as you can imagine, there will be another chapter dealing with the battle making this officially 4 chapters long (when the next chapter comes out. This is including the buildup). Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!<strong>

**So I've once again updated the progress bar on my page and have officially added the time table to its predicted release. I know I said I would have it done yesterday, I just lost track of time.**

**Also, in other news dealing with stories I have, be prepared to see a new Birth of Madness chapter sometime this week or weekend. The story will still be on a general hiatus, I just wanted to get another chapter out. So expect an update soon to that. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	94. Aftermath of the Battle part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

The fighting was beginning to die down throughout the fortress. At the service entrance, Liza, along with the remaining akuma and stone soldiers were pushing back the remaining exorcists and finders that were in the area. Most of them were the remaining forces that had survived from the second level and were in the process of retreating. Liza however was able to cut them off by the entrance and shot several orbs into the exorcists and finders, killing them on the spot. It was at this moment she heard the explosion coming from within the abbey itself. She realized it was Matt's ability and figured that he had just won his fight so she began to head down to the first level to assist the others in their fight.

Down in the middle of the first level, Tyki was fighting off 2 exorcists. He used his Teez to kill one of the exorcists and then pulled the heart out of the other. It was when the last exorcist fell to the ground dead when Sheril showed up from the end of the first level.

"Sheril, how is everything where you were" asked Tyki as he kicked the body of a dead finder to make sure he was actually dead.

"Good" said Sheril. "There weren't many over there so it was fairly easy to clean up the mess."

"That's good to hear. By the way, where's Jynx" Tyki asked, as he couldn't see her anywhere.

"She's with Lily" said Sheril, a frown on his face.

"That's good that means Lily is alright" said Tyki.

"Not quite" said Sheril. "Lily was hit by one of those cannon shells. She's in really bad shape at the moment, the same with Jynx."

"But Jynx said she was alright."

"Well apparently she's not" said Sheril. "She's limping pretty badly. Right now though she is resting and making sure Lily is alright, but we will need to get Lily medical attention quickly."

"We will" said Tyki. "But right now we need to worry about the battle on hand so that we can bring everyone back." Sheril nodded and ran with Tyki towards the main entrance.

When they arrived they found Road and Liza sitting on top of some destroyed stone soldiers talking. When Tyki and Sheril arrived they both looked over and smiled.

"Hey, I take it you two took care of everything down here" asked Tyki.

"Yep" Road said happily. "The last of them went running for the hills once the cannons stopped firing a moment ago."

"Now that you mention it, ever since that last explosion we heard there haven't been any more shots" Sheril pointed out.

"That's true but I think that was Matt" said Liza. "Speaking of which, is he with you?" Tyki and Sheril gave a confused look.

"No, he isn't" said Sheril. "I would've been the first to see him. I would've figured he would be there to help Lily."

"But I thought that that explosion came from him" said Liza. "If, he hasn't shown up then what could that." Liza cut herself off as her eyes widened. She looked up at Tyki who began to realize what she was thinking. "Oh no" said Liza and suddenly everyone was running up the main street heading up to the abbey.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, at the mainland, Rouvelier was watching the few remaining exorcists and finders return to the mainland, battle worn. He walked up to one of the exorcists.<p>

"Tell me, what happened in there" asked Rouvelier.

"We thought we were winning for a little while" said the exorcist. "We were pushing them back but for some reason we weren't able to break them. They had stone soldiers fighting all over the place. There were more of them then akuma in there."

"Did you manage to kill any of the Noah" asked Rouvelier. The exorcist shook his head. "Damn it" yelled Rouvelier.

"Sir what shall we do" asked one of the CROWS. "Reinforcements are a few hours away. We might be able to counter attack."

"It's too late" said Rouvelier. "High tide will be rolling in soon and they will have plenty of time to secure their defenses. We will pull back all forces, the attack was a complete failure" said Rouvelier as he began to walk away from the battle. The CROW looked a bit surprised but then signaled for everyone to fall back.

* * *

><p>Back in Mont Saint Michel, Tyki, Road, Sheril and Liza began making their way up the inner staircase after climbing over the ruined spire. Tyki was the first to enter the cathedral. He noticed that the entire back wall was broken. And then he saw something that made him worried. He immediately turned to Sheril.<p>

"Sheril, take Road and Liza into the abbey, and get the medical team back here immediately" Tyki said calmly. Sheril walked up next to him and looked past him. He looked back at Tyki and nodded and took Liza and Road and took them through the cathedral, doing his best so that they couldn't look at the courtyard. Tyki then rushed out onto the courtyard. There was a massive crater at the edge of the courtyard and a trail of blood that moved away from the crater. And there lying in the middle of the courtyard, in a pool of blood was Matt, his body completely broken and bleeding. Tyki walked over to him and checked for a pulse. His eyes widened, miraculously, Matt was still alive, despite his current state. He then quickly and gently picked Matt up and began to carry him to the medical wing.

* * *

><p>Two days later, Matt woke up to find himself in the hospital wing of the abbey. His body ached all over. He went to lean up when he noticed that there was a doctor standing over him.<p>

"Well it's good to see you awake" said the doctor.

"W-what happened" Matt asked as he rubbed his head with his left hand, the only limb on his body that didn't feel heavy.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure what happened to you" said the doctor. "But when we returned to the abbey we were immediately brought to you. And I must say I couldn't believe the condition you were in."

"What do you mean" asked Matt.

"I will tell you in a little bit" said the doctor. "Right now I think you should just rest."

"I'd rather walk around doc" said Matt as he leaned out of bed and stood up. He stumbled a bit and was caught by the doctor.

"Hold on there" said the doctor. "You really shouldn't be moving around right now."

"I want to doc, and there's nothing you can do about it."

"Fine, at least have my assistant accompany you."

"That won't be necessary" said Matt as he began to walk. For some reason though, walking felt a bit awkward to him, like he was walking for the first time. He looked down at his legs and noticed he was wearing loose fitting pants which reminded him of the prison pants he wore when trapped by the Black Order so very long ago. "I can take care of myself." Matt then worked his way out of the room and into the main hallway.

It took Matt a minute but as he continued to walk he found it easier to move, though he did have a bit of a limp. Matt found his way to a balcony which overlooked the village. His eyes widened at the sight. There was virtually nothing standing inside the village other than a few walls. Craters were everywhere. He looked over towards the main entrance to the abbey to see that one of the towers had toppled over. And as he continued to scan he saw hundreds of people working. His eye told him that they were all akuma. He was so fixated on the destruction that he didn't even notice Tyki walking up behind him.

"Quite the sight" Tyki said casually which startled Matt.

"Geez Tyki, give me some warning next time" said Matt as he recovered from the startle. Tyki laughed a little.

"Don't worry about the damage; we began reconstruction of everything that was destroyed."

"That's good to hear" said Matt.

"To be honest when the doctor said you were walking I was a bit surprised" said Tyki. This caught Matt's attention.

"Why is that" Matt asked as he turned to face Tyki.

"Well before I answer that tell me can you close your left hand?"

"What kind of question is that" asked Matt. "Of course I can." Matt raised his right hand and clenched his fist into a ball. What he saw shocked him. The only fingers to move were his thumb, index, and middle finger. He immediately looked up at Tyki, a look of concern on his face. Tyki smiled and put his arm around Matt's back.

"Come on back to the hospital wing" said Tyki. "There's a lot of things we need to explain." Tyki then led Matt back to the hospital wing.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 95 coming soon!  
><strong>

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter because this one was fun to write. I decided early on in writing the chapter to have the aftermath of the battle break up into 2 parts, so the conclusion of the aftermath will happen in the next chapter. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok, so I've updated the percent complete for Betrayal of Madness, you can find it on my page. Also, in terms of the expected release date, I have given marked a day that I expect it to be ready so head to my page and see for yourself exactly when I believe the chapter will be ready. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	95. Aftermath of the Battle part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

-Flashback-

Matt was holding onto the edge with this left hand while Apocryphos help onto Matt's leg.

"Get off me" yelled Matt as he tried to kick Apocryphos off but to no avail. Then Matt got an idea. He aimed his right hand straight at Apocryphos and an orb began to form. Apocryphos' eyes widened.

"What do you think you're doing? If you attack me at this range, you won't be able to escape the blast."

"We'll see about that" Matt grinned as the orb continued to grow in size.

"Are you mad? You'll get yourself killed" yelled Apocryphos. The orb continued to grow then compressed itself. Matt grinned again.

"As a matter of fact, I am" said Matt as he shot the orb at Apocryphos.

Apocryphos' eyes widened and he released Matt's leg. As he began to fall he raised his arms to defend himself. He raised his left hand at Matt and a green aura began to glow. The orb Matt shot hit the aura and exploded violently. Apocryphos was sent crashing into the ground below in a cloud of smoke.

Matt watched as the explosion quickly expanded and begin to engulf him and was thrown violently into the air once the explosion began consuming his left hand. Matt eventually landed just at the end of the newly formed crater. As he hit the ground he fell unconscious.

Matt woke up only a few moments later. After a moment of just lying there he began to feel intense pain. Matt realized that he was lying on unstable ground as he saw some stones break away and fall to the ground below. He then reached out with his right hand and began dragging himself away. He tried to use his legs to help him but only his right leg was getting any sort of reaction, though the pain was immense. After what felt like an age of dragging himself away from the crater, Matt finally stopped and rolled onto his back. He felt the pain but could no longer move and as he stared at the smoke filled sky, hoping that everyone was still alright, he lost consciousness.

-End Flashback-

Tyki led Matt back into the hospital wing and made him sit down on the bed that Matt was originally lying on. He wanted Matt to lie down but Matt refused.

"What happened to me Tyki" asked Matt as he looked at his hand.

"I found you in a pretty bad state" said Tyki, "A lot happened to you."

"That's not what I mean" said Matt. "I mean what's wrong with my hand? Why can I only move 3 fingers?"

"I think the doctor would be best to tell you" said Tyki as he left the room in search of the doctor. After about a minute of waiting Tyki re-entered the room with the doctor.

"Thanks for bringing him back" the Doctor said to Tyki as they entered. "The Skulls said that he wouldn't really be ready to walk around yet.

"It's not a problem but don't you think you should've said something to him before he got up and walked off" Tyki criticized.

"Well I tried but he simply refused" said the doctor. Matt was getting annoyed by their conversation; he wanted to know what was going on.

"Excuse me, will someone tell me what's wrong with me" Matt asked angrily. Tyki and the doctor stopped talking and looked at Matt.

"Yes, yes of course. I apologize for keeping you in the dark here" said the doctor. "Well as you may have known, you were in bad shape when we were first brought in. To be honest it was a miracle you were still alive."

"It's true" said Tyki.

"I don't get it, I look fine" said Matt.

"But I bet you don't feel fine" said the doctor.

"Yeah…" said Matt as he looked a bit suspiciously at the doctor. "Why is that?"

"First tell me what feels the worst."

"Well I suppose my left leg feels the worst."

"Makes sense, anything else?"

"Well my heel of my right foot feels a bit awkward and of course half of my right hand isn't moving."

"Well that seems about right" said the doctor, "seeing as when you came to us you didn't have any of those." Matt sat there, shocked at what he heard, but his expression didn't change.

"W-what do you mean I didn't have them" Matt asked, his head not wrapping around the concept.

"What I mean is that when we arrived, your left leg from your knee down, the heel to your right foot, and half of your right hand was missing."

"But….I don't get it, I see them here right now" said Matt. "I can feel them."

"Yes well we worked on you with the help of the Skulls over the last 2 days piecing you back together. It wasn't easy as we were forced to reopen wounds and create some new ones."

"Wait, why did you have to create new wounds" Matt asked, cutting off the doctor's explanation.

"Well the Skulls asked us to break off small fragments of your remaining bones and muscles so that they could sort of reconstruct your limbs."

"That makes no sense" said Matt. "How could that even work?"

"It's because you're a Noah" said Tyki. "Remember when you lost your arm back in Siberia? It's the same concept."

"Then why couldn't you just reattach them?"

"Because there was nothing left to reattach" said Tyki. "So the Skulls decided to reconstruct the limbs using bits and pieces of your other bones and muscles to create new limbs. Then they simply reattached it and your body began to heal properly like in Siberia."

"Well they did have to improvise a little bit here and there" the doctor added.

"How so" asked Matt.

"Well they put some metal plates in certain parts of you so we didn't have to use to many bone fragments, when we took out the muscles they healed fairly quickly so there was no need to worry about those."

"Ok I don't get it, if they repaired my limbs then how come I can't move my hand and such?"

"It's because your nerves haven't healed" said Tyki. "Just like in Siberia, it will take some time."

"Last time they didn't take too long" said Matt.

"Not this time" said the doctor. "Your nervous system is repairing itself very slowly. IT will be at least a week before you can move them well and maybe another week of physical therapy."

"Well this sucks" said Matt.

"Look on the plus side though" said Tyki. "At least you can walk. You proved that yourself."

"I suppose" said Matt then he began thinking about the battle. "Tyki, is everyone alright" Matt asked, his voice now worried.

"Road, Sheril and I are fine" said Tyki. "We had a few cuts and bruises for the most part but nothing to serious. Liza had a nasty head wound that's taking it's time to heal."

"What about Lily, and Jynx as well" Matt asked when he remembered seeing Lily lying on the ground. Tyki's expression changed to a frown.

"Well…Jynx is alright for the most part. He got pretty beaten up but she's up and walking around now."

"What about Lily?"

"Lily is a bit more complicated" said Tyki.

"She was very badly wounded" said the doctor, continuing Tyki's thought. "She came to us with her side pretty much blown open. The Skulls worked on her for a very long time and did what they could to help her."

"And" Matt asked, becoming impatient.

"Well, she's stable now but unconscious. We don't know when she will wake up" said the doctor.

"Where is she" asked Matt.

"She's in the room next to yours" said the doctor. Matt immediately stood up and began to limp his way out of the room when Tyki and the doctor stopped him.

"Let me go" Matt said angrily as he tried to break free from their grip.

"Matt you need to rest and this time we aren't going to let you leave" said Tyki.

"I just want to see her damn it" said Matt. Tyki loosened his grip; he knew that he had the right to see his akuma, however the doctor still refused.

"Doc, I'm warning you right now, keep holding me back and I'll break your hand" Matt threatened.

"You should probably do as he says" said Tyki.

"I can't, he shouldn't be moving around right now" said the doctor. "It'll slow the healing process." As he finished saying this Matt had enough. He grabbed the doctor's right hand with his left, and with one motion, Matt crushed the doctor's hand. The doctor immediately let go and screamed in pain as Matt limped out of the room.

"He did warn you" said Tyki as he followed after Matt.

* * *

><p>Matt entered Lily's hospital room. He saw Lily lying on the bed in her human form. He could see that she was covered in bandages. He limped over and pulled over a chair and sat down next to the bed. He looked at her and brushed her hair with his left hand. As he did Tyki entered the room.<p>

"This is all my fault" said Matt without looking at Tyki. "If I had listened to Father then we would all be safe right now." Tyki walked over and put his and on his shoulder.

"It's not your fault. If we truly wanted to leave we would have forced you to leave" said Tyki.

"But still, I should've listened" said Matt, who was filled with regret and sadness over this.

"Well yes, but in the end we won and nobody died" said Tyki. "And we didn't lose our home. So I think in the grand scheme of things, it was smart of us not to leave."

"I still think it was a mistake. I put you all in harm's way because of my decision.

"We're at war Matt, it happens. But I think you've been told that before. You need to put this behind you and move on. If you don't, the memory will haunt you. Just like the memory of killing your mother still haunts you."

"Please don't bring that up" said Matt.

"Sorry" said Tyki.

"No it's fine. You're right" said Matt with a smile. "If I don't put this in the past then it will. Thanks Tyki." Tyki smiled.

"Come on" said Tyki as he helped Matt back up. "You need to go back to your room and rest. Get healed up so we can get revenge for what they did to our home." Matt smiled and nodded as he walked back to the room he was previously in.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 96 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as I had a fun time writing it. I had originally thought about giving Matt fake limbs but I felt that it sort of pushed the boundaries of the story and world of dgm (which is weird seeing as they build robots and stuff in the dgm world…). Anyways…because of that I decided to give a more "natural" process of giving him new limbs after I looked at my old chapter where Matt did lose his arm and I think that this explanation would fit better than the other. Please let me know what you thought about the chapter!**

**Ok so a quick announcement, the release date has changed for Betrayal of Madness! Please go to my page and see when I think it will be ready to be published. Also, I will be adding a VERY important announcement dealing with future plans and updates. So you may want to go and read that. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	96. Forest Chase

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Three weeks passed since the battle of Mont Saint Michel and things were improving there. Over the first week, Matt never really left his bed in the hospital wing due to doctor's orders and Tyki's enforcement. However during that time, Jynx spent most, if not all of her time with Matt; sleeping on his bed as a cub panther.

After the first week, the nerves finally reformed and Matt began to move much more easily now. However there was still some difficulties and Matt had to completely rehab his new limbs. But after the week ended Matt was able to walk without hindrance. Matt spent most of his time walking through the ruined village below the abbey. Reconstruction had begun almost immediately following the end of the battle but there was still so much work to be done. There were still massive piles of rubble scattered around the area and scaffolding rose high into the air.

When the third week came, Matt began to train himself again so that he could adjust to using his newly reconstructed limbs. However, he found it surprisingly easy, just like before, to use his abilities. One day, Matt was finishing up some minor training when Road walked in.

"Hey Matt, what are you doing" asked Road as she entered the room. Matt immediately stopped training and looked at her with a smile.

"Not much, just training" Matt said warmly.

"You've been training all this week, don't you get bored" asked Road.

"Not really" said Matt. "It helps keep my mind away from other things."

"You mean Lily?"

"Yeah."

"Matt, I know Tyki told you to not worry about it, please tell me you're listening to him" Road said worriedly.

"Don't worry Road" Matt said after laughing for a very brief moment. "I'm listening to his advice, this is merely helping me."

"Alright" said Road, a bit suspicious but overlook the feeling. "Do you need any help with your training?"

"No, I was just finishing up when you walked in" said Matt. As they talked, a maid walked into the training hall.

"Your father wishes to speak with you right away" the maid said to Matt who nodded, acknowledging what the maid said.

"Well Road, shall we go see what Father wants?" Road nodded happily and followed Matt closely as the left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt and Road entered Sheril's private study where Sheril was once again sitting behind his desk working.<p>

"You wanted to speak to me Father" Matt asked as he entered the room with Road. Sheril looked up and smiled.

"Yes, the Earl wants you to go on a quick mission" said Sheril.

"What" Road said, surprised. "Matt is still recovering from the fight. He can't just go sending Matt off on missions!"

"I'm aware and I tried to talk reason to the Earl but he insisted that the mission would be a quick and easy one."

"What's the mission" Matt asked.

"Well I'm sure you haven't forgotten the forces that attacked us" said Sheril.

"How could I forget" Matt asked sarcastically, though there was an obvious angry tone in his voice.

"Yes well, apparently they are still in the area more or less and the Earl wants to scout them to see if they are of any immediate threat."

"Sure thing, I'll head out right away" said Matt.

"Are you sure you want to do this" asked Road.

"I'll be fine" Matt said with a smile. "The mission seems easy enough, and it's as Father said, it will be quick and easy."

"Alright" said Road. "Just make sure you come back in one piece." Matt laughed and patted her on the head.

"Sure thing Road."

"I will be sending a handful of akuma with you for your mission as protection" said Sheril. "Just in case things turn for the worse."

"Alright then, I guess I'll be back shortly then." Matt then exited the room.

* * *

><p>An hour or so later, Tyki entered Sheril's office.<p>

"Hey Sheril, where's Matt? I was going to help him train for a bit today" said Tyki.

"He's off on a mission" said Sheril.

"Is he ready for one" Tyki asked, surprised to hear that Matt was on a mission.

"Well Matt certainly thought so."

"Will he be alright?"

"He will be just fine" Sheril reassured Tyki. "It's a very quick reconnaissance mission. He should be done and heading home shortly."

"Where's the mission"

"In France, the group that attacked us is held up just outside a forest."

"I see, so not too far from here?"

"No not too far, though far enough where it would be more convenient to use an ark gate."

"I should've gone with him. Or somebody at least."

"He has about 20 akuma with him just in case, he'll be just fine."

"Yeah you're right, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine" said Tyki with a grin.

"Exactly, like I told Matt, it's a quick and easy mission."

-Meanwhile, at the exact same time-

"QUICK AND EASY MY ASS" yelled Matt as he ran for his life through the woods with his akuma with him. As he ran a cannon shell exploded a short distance away causing dirt to fly into the air and the yells of around 70 exorcists and finders chasing after them.

-Flashback to a moment prior to this-

Matt snuck through the woods with the akuma that accompanied him. As they began to reach the end of the woods they noticed a few finders keeping guard. Matt and the akumas hid behind trees that were very close to the finder, who really wasn't paying much attention. As Matt looked he could only see a small handful of finders and exorcists walking and sitting around, so Matt made the signal to ambush them. Matt then leapt out from behind the tree and killed the finder. The akumas followed him but all stopped in their tracks as the cannons that were used during the last battle were there pointing straight at them, not to mention 20 exorcists and 50 finders.

"Sir, what do we do" asked the akuma. "Run or fight?"

"Run, definitely run" said Matt as he turned around and began to run away. The akumas looked at each other then took off after Matt. As they ran they heard someone yell to fire the cannons and the exorcists and finders took off after them.

-End Flashback-

Matt was running for his life now, every once in a while a cannon shell would hit the ground nearby which would send dirt, rocks and sticks into his face. He turned around to see the akuma that were with him were running as well, not to mention 70 members of the Black Order.

As he looked back he saw a cannon shell land and explode right onto an akuma, destroying it easily and sending another crashing into the ground only to be quickly finished off.

"Damn it, if I get out of this alive I'm going to kill Father for this damn mission" Matt yelled to himself as he reached a small ledge. He leapt off it as a cannon shell landed right behind him, shooting Matt forward. Matt stumbled a bit as he landed before regaining speed. He then saw the base of a tree explode in front of him and the tree began to fall down into his path. Matt managed to get by but the akuma that had made it right behind him was crushed by the tree.

Matt continued to run frantically and had put a fair distance between him and those chasing him until finally a cannon shell exploded next to him. Matt was sent flying to the side and into a tree which caused him to spin a bit before hitting the ground. Matt laid there for a moment before starting to get up. As he did, he noticed someone standing nearby. It appeared to be someone from the Black Order. Suddenly there was a glint of light and several needles struck Matt. Matt went to pull out the needles and fight the exorcist however his head began to feel extremely dizzy. He tried to ignore it and stood up. He took a few steps forward, ready to attack but his vision became blurry and he began to stumble. Finally, just as he was about to reach the person he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 97 coming soon!**

**Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. This one proved though to take a while to write because I wasn't sure if I wanted to add the chase through the woods into this chapter, or save it for the next. But in the end I think I made the right choice. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok so I've once again updated the information of Betrayal of Madness! I would recommend you go and check it out on my page. Also, while you are there, there is a very important announcement about my updating schedule that would be very important to read. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	97. Imprisoned

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt opened his eyes to find himself being dragged through a hallway. As he looked at himself he saw that his clothes had been exchanged for the same prison clothes that he wore the last time he was captured. He shook his head trying to regain his thoughts but everything just before he collapsed was a blur to him. Eventually the people dragging him stopped and the sound of a metal door opened. Matt was then tossed into the room. He hit the ground and rolled a bit before hitting the wall. He just laid there as the two men that dragged him attached chains to his legs before walking away. The metal door slammed and locked after they left.

Matt leaned up then leaned against the wall and let out a sigh. His arms felt heavy, but he knew why; they had sealed his arms meaning there was no way he was using any of his abilities.

"Feels familiar doesn't it" Majnun said appearing next to Matt, also sitting on the ground.

"I suppose so, but it has been a while" said Matt. "I didn't expect myself to be back here again."

"Well you were dumb enough to get caught" Majnun grinned; Matt shot a glare at him.

"You know that there was nothing I could do at the time" said Matt. "I was hit by some sort of poison needle and that was it."

"I'm perfectly aware of what happened. All I'm saying is that you walked into it" said Majnun. "So I'll say it again, you were dumb enough to get caught."

"Shut up Majnun, one of those stupid shells blew up next to me. If that didn't happen then I would've escaped. I was getting away from them."

"Oh yeah? Then how did that exorcist get in front of you?"

"I don't know" said Matt. "Maybe the exorcist was scouting the woods and was on their way back."

"Could be, but I'd like to think it was because of your incompetence that caused the exorcist to get in front of you."

"Gee, thanks for that" Matt said matter-of-factly as he looked away from Majnun. "I wonder how long I will stay here this time" Matt thought out loud.

"Who knows" said Majnun. "They seem a bit more prepared this time for you. Escaping won't be easy, if not impossible for you."

"Again, thanks for that" Matt said sarcastically.

"Anytime" Majnun grinned. The poison was still having an effect on Matt as he felt himself suddenly get very tired and slump over and fall pass out on the ground.

Two days passed and nothing happened to Matt. He just sat there in his cell waiting for something to happen but nothing ever did. Instead he spent his entire time talking to Majnun meaning he was made fun of and mocked over the last 2 days. It was around midnight, or close to that, Matt wasn't really sure what time it was, only that it had been several hours since his last meal. Matt was half awake when he heard the door unlock and open and close. Matt heard someone walk in but didn't bother to look up.

"Finally here to start the torture" Matt asked bitterly as he stared at the ground.

"Not really" said the person. Matt's eyes widened a little and looked up to see Lenalee standing there.

"Lenalee, what are you doing here" Matt asked surprised.

"I'm not entirely sure myself" said Lenalee. "I guess I wanted to see if you were alright."

"Well they haven't done anything to me yet, so I'm fine" said Matt.

"No I mean from the attack. I heard about it in the reports that were given to my brother."

"I see, I doubt those reports will tell you anything of interest regarding me" said Matt.

"That's why I came to see you" said Lenalee.

"I'm fine, I had some injuries but they healed. But I must thank you. If you hadn't told me about the approaching attack, we may not have been prepared for it."

"It was the least I could do for you helping me" Lenalee admitted.

"But what I'm really surprised about is the fact that you haven't turned into a Fallen One" said Matt. "After all pretty much any exorcist that aids a Noah usually ends up one."

"I'm aware, and I don't know myself why. Perhaps the innocence realized how I felt about the situation and decided what I was doing was the right thing in the end."

"Makes sense, but then again I know really nothing about innocence" said Matt as he looked at his cursed arm. Lenalee grabbed a chair that was next to an old wooden table and pulled it over and sat down.

"You know that they're going to torture you" said Lenalee, the sound of concern in her voice.

"Well I figured as much" said Matt. "The real question is what they plan on doing to me."

"I'm not sure, but our outdoor training grounds have been being worked on ever since you arrived. I think they plan on making a spectacle of you." Matt let out a laugh when he heard this.

"Well then this will probably be the most interesting torture I think they could come up with" Matt grinned.

"Matt, they're going to torture you! Don't you think you should be a bit more concerned" Lenalee asked, surprised to hear Matt's reaction.

"Not really" said Matt. "This one sounds too interesting for me to be concerned."

"Well you should get some rest" said Lenalee as she stood up and moved the chair back to where she got it from.

"And why is that" Matt asked.

"Because I think they're starting tomorrow."

"Thank you once again Lenalee" Matt said with a smile.

"You're welcome" said Lenalee, smiling back. She then opened the door and closed it, the sound of the door being locked echoed through his cell. Matt then laid on the ground and slowly and uncomfortably fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The next day, Matt was forced awake by a bunch of guards. The released him from his chains and began forcing Matt to walk. Matt was brought outside to what appeared to be some training grounds. A large circular building was constructed on the grounds. When Matt entered he was forced to the ground and the doors shut behind him. He looked around to see that there were a lot of people looking over ledges at him. He stood up and continued to walk until he reached the center of the arena-like structure.<p>

"Welcome Noah of Madness" said Rouvelier as he walked to the edge so that Matt could see him. "So glad that you could join us today."

"Not like I had a choice" Matt said bitterly as he glared at Rouvelier. "So tell me, what exactly are you going to do to me?"

"Me? I'm going to do nothing. However, over the years you have made a lot of enemies and a lot of people want revenge. Consider this a game. You get to fight off the exorcists and finders who will try to kill you."

"And let me guess, I am unarmed" Matt asked sarcastically.

"Correct. This structure is filled with special seals that form a barrier which prevents you from using your Noah powers, even though you remain in your Noah form."

"Doesn't sound like a fun game to me" said Matt.

"This game isn't meant for you to enjoy" grinned Rouvelier then the gates that were holding back several armed exorcists and finders came charging out, ready to attack Matt. Matt stood there, a blank expression on his face as the first person reached him. The finder then lunged his sword at Matt's head but Matt simply leaned his head to the side. At the same moment, Matt grabbed the finder by the wrist with his right hand, and with an open palm, slammed his left hand into the finder's elbow. The elbow snapped lick a twig as Matt then grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder.

Following up right behind Matt was yet another finder who took a swing at Matt who ducked then elbowed the finder in the gut causing the finder to pass out. As the finder fell Matt grabbed the body, spun, and threw it at the attacking exorcists and finders, hitting the closest ones and knocking them to the ground. Matt continued this for what felt like forever until finally an exorcist stabbed him through the shoulder. Matt looked down in surprise as he kicked the exorcist, sending him into another finder who then fell to the ground.

As Matt pulled out the weapon he felt another strike his side. Matt, again managed to hit the exorcist to the ground but as he did he was stabbed in the back. Finally, Matt was being overrun and after a few more blows Matt was beginning to lose consciousness. Rouvelier gave the signal to stop as he watched Matt stagger forward a few steps before crashing to the ground unconscious.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 98 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as this one was very tough to write. This will be a 2-3 chapter ark depending on how it turns out, you will find out for sure in the next chapter. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok, this is an important announcement! So, a few files on my computer have been corrupted…unfortunately, those files happened to be the majority of my brainstorming and early rough drafts of Betrayal of Madness. This has unfortunately set me back heavily. I have updated my page with the current timetable until completion, I apologize for this. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	98. Prison Break

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

The game that Rouvelier had given Matt continued everyday over an entire month. Everyday Matt would be forced to fight unarmed until he could not fight any longer and even then they beat him until he was finally unconscious. Rouvelier would only stop the fights just in time so Matt wouldn't die and treated all major wounds so that he could continue to fight.

Matt sat in his cell after one of the fights, a nurse attending a new stab wound that was in his chest. The attack punctured a lung but wasn't fatal by any means. After the nurse had finished she stood up and left the cell leaving Matt in the dark.

"Boy, you are allowing the crap to get beaten out of you" Majnun mocked as he appeared once again next to Matt like every other day.

"Nothing new there" Matt said in a somewhat depressed voice. "It's not like I have any weapons to defend myself with."  
>"All I'm hearing is excuses" said Majnun.<p>

"Shut up" Matt said in a bitter voice.

"Sounds like somebody is mad" Majnun grinned.

"I've been trapped here for a month, being forced to fight for my life every day. And on top of that I have to deal with you. Of course I'm mad" Matt nearly yelled.

"Calm yourself" said Majnun. "I'm helping you pass the time. If I wasn't here you would probably have gone insane. And I'm not talking about the same insanity when you lose control."

"I know what you mean, you don't need to clarify" said Matt.

"Just reminding you" said Majnun.

"I wonder if they're trying to find me" said Matt as he stared at the ground.

"I'm sure they are" said Majnun. "I'm going to bet anything that they were searching for you the moment you appeared to be taking too long."

"That reminds me, I'm going to have to kill Father when I get home for sending me on that damn mission" Matt said, a bit of anger in his voice. Majnun laughed.

"What were his words again? A quick and easy mission" Majnun asked as he laughed.

"Exactly those" said Matt.

"Well to be fair, I don't think he was expecting the Black Order to have reinforced their retreating army."

"True but still, he insisted that the mission would be quick" said Matt.

"That's true. However, I don't really think he was expecting for so many to be remaining in the area."

"It makes me wonder" Matt said as he thought outloud.

"What are you thinking" asked Majnun.

"Well I'm beginning to wonder just how many pieces of innocence they really have" said Matt.

"Explain" asked Majnun, a bit interested in what Matt had to say.

"Well the original cube had 109 pieces of innocence we know that. Now we take that knowledge and move it to their second cube that they have in their possession and assume that they have another set of 109 pieces of innocence."  
>"Alright, then they would have a minimum of 109 pieces of innocence because that cube was completely intact" said Majnun.<p>

"Correct however there is a flaw in that logic."

"How so" Majnun asked, now extremely interested in Matt's logic.

"Well, if it's true and that cube only has 109 pieces of innocence, then they would really only have a little more than that. And after our battle we had destroyed somewhere between 40 to 50 pieces of innocence."

"So it was a major success" said Majnun, interrupting Matt. "We destroyed the majority of their innocence."

"Will you let me finish" Matt snapped at Majnun. "I haven't finished explaining." Matt cleared his throat and regained his thought process. "The Black Order would never dare risk the majority of their innocence on one attack unless it was a final battle or something. Meaning this new cube of theirs holds much more than 109 pieces of innocence." Majnun was surprised at Matt's conclusion. He thought about it for a moment and realized that he might actually be right.

"How many are we talking here" asked Majnun.

"I'm not sure, but there is obviously a lot" said Matt. "Otherwise they wouldn't have sent so many exorcists to that battle. There's also one more thing I've begun to realize" said Matt.

"And what's that?"

"Well during my fights while here, the exorcists have been using their innocence against me. And while fighting I've felt a strange difference between a few of the innocence."

"Strange how" asked Majnun.

"Well it felt as if some of the innocence had a much greater potential in power. It's hard to explain."

"Well you might just be feeling that because you're exhausted" said Majnun. "Try getting some rest. I'm sure they will be back soon to drag you out for another fight."

"Yeah, I'll have to tell the Earl sometime about this" said Matt as he laid down and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The next day Matt woke up to the door to his cell being opened and gaurds removing his restraints. They once again dragged him out to the stadium where once again, a large crowd of people were waiting as well as another large group of exorcists and finders, all ready to attack.<p>

Matt was dragged out to the center before being released. He shot a death glare at Rouvelier who watched from above. Rouvelier signaled for the fight to begin and the exorcists and finders came charging at Matt. Like all the previous times, Matt was able to easily dodge and weave his way through the beginning of attackers while managing to knock them out as they passed. And just like every time, Matt was quickly overwhelmed.

Matt went to block an attack from a finder. As the sword hit Matt's hand, he instantly realized something was different. He didn't feel any form of innocence in the weapon, not even artificial innocence, meaning he could actually use the weapon. Matt grinned as he broke the finder's arm and turned the sword around and stabbed him. Everyone attacking stopped in their tracks as they saw the finder fall to the ground dead. They all looked at Matt as he twirled the sword in his hand before gaining a good grip on the sword in his right hand.

"What's going on" yelled Rouvelier as he looked down at Matt wielding a weapon. "How is he able to carry a weapon in here?" Matt looked up at Rouvelier and grinned.

"Isn't it obvious" Matt said. "The finder brought in a normal sword." Rouvelier's eyes widened as Matt then charged at the finder in front of him, easily stabbing him in the heart. Matt pulled the sword out and spun around. In the same motion, Matt cut off the head of another attacking finder. Now, everyone was once again attacking Matt.

Matt was able to block and attack with ease now that he had a weapon and the body count was quickly rising. Eventually, Rouvelier had enough of it and had the science department bring out smaller versions of the cannons used during the attack on Mont Saint Michel. The cannons went off and all of the shots landed near Matt which sent him flying into a wall. As he hit the wall, Matt coughed and blood began coming from his mouth.

Matt laid there against the wall as the exorcists and finder's surrounded him. Suddenly, an alarm blared stating that the barrier around the headquarters had been breached. Immediately a large ark gate appeared and dozens of akuma came pouring out of the gate. Chaos ensued as the exorcists and finders were forced to take their attention away from Matt as the akuma began destroying the seals in the stadium that kept Matt's Noah powers sealed.

Matt watched but he began to cough violently as the effects of his newly formed injuries began to really set in. He covered his mouth with his hand and when he looked at it, it was covered with blood. Matt began to feel a bit dizzy as he saw two figures grab him and drag him through the ark gate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 99 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter as this one was a pain to write. I found it difficult to really find a good pacing to the chapter but in the end I think it turned out alright. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok so as I mentioned yesterday, I lost a lot of info that dealt with my Betrayal of Madness story. Well, unfortunately they are still gone and I am having trouble recalling what I even wrote, as many times I wrote on impulse. And so I really have no idea when this story will be ready. The big thing that I lost was a bunch of information dealing with new enemies and abilities for Matt which was also unfortunately one of the biggest things holding me back. I can't publish the story until I figure those things out. I hope you understand and I am still working hard to get it ready. As always I will keep you posted and you can go to my page to see the progress.**

**Also, I am sad to say that this may be the last day I can actually update daily, as I start school tomorrow. I really hate leaving you all with nothing and I will try my hardest to get chapters out as fast as possible, but seeing as I write at night, it is going to be difficult. Again, I will try to update as often as possible and try even harder to continue to update every day. But do not be surprised if you don't see an update one day. Anyways that's it for today (sorry for this bit at the end for being so long today, had a lot to day). Until next time!**


	99. Reunited

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt was dragged through the ark gate, as he stared at the ground he could tell he was outside. He looked up to see a familiar sight, the cathedral at the top of Mont Saint Michel. He was able to stare at it as he was being dragged along. The building had been repaired and a new spire rose high above the building. As he stared he lost his strength and his head slumped down and he began to stare at the ground once again as they entered the building. His vision began to become hazy again as he heard more footsteps moving quickly towards him. A moment later he lost consciousness.

Matt woke up to find himself lying face down on a table. The dizziness that he had felt earlier was gone and Matt went to stand up. As he did, he felt a sharp pain come across his entire back. However, Matt decided to stand up anyways.

"I wouldn't go moving around quite yet" said a voice that came from his right side. Matt turned to see it was Tyki, who was sitting in a chair.

"Tyki" said Matt plainly, but there was a slight touch of surprise, as if he wasn't expecting to see him.

"It's been a while" Tyki smiled. "And I must say, you look like a mess."

"Were you one of the ones who rescued me" Matt asked.

"Indeed I was" said Tyki. "Could you not tell it was me?"

"No, my vision was to blurry" said Matt.

"Well I can imagine how that happened" said Tyki, Matt grinned a little.

"So wait, who was with you? I know there was a second person."

"Over there" said Tyki as he pointed to the other end of the room. Matt turned to see who it was and his grin faded, and a look of anger came over his face. There, sitting in another chair, looking bored out of their mind was Lulubell.

"What is she doing here" Matt asked Tyki angrily.

"Well she was the other person who helped rescue you" said Tyki.

"Yep, I'm going back" said Matt as he turned to leave the room.

"Matt, where are you going" Tyki asked as he stood up.

"Back to the Order" said Matt. "I'll be damned if I let Lulubell one of the ones who rescued me. I'll go and rescue myself thank you." Matt went to leave as he felt something wrap around his right arm pulled him back. Matt ended up landing face first on the table he was once lying on. As he went to get up whatever was wrapped around his arm released and suddenly a hand pushed down on his head, keeping him pinned as Tyki restrained his legs.

"Matt I must admit, you really do know how to hold a grudge when you want to" said Tyki holding back some laughter. "You should be thanking Lulubell."

"And tell me why I should thank her for anything" Matt said angrily when he realized the one holding his head was Lulubell.

"Lulubell infiltrated the Black Order almost 2 weeks ago in search for you" Tyki explained. "She ended up searching several of the branches until she was able to finally get to the headquarters where she finally found you and reported it to us."

"Whatever" said Matt. "Why the hell are you two holding me down?"

"Because you have some shrapnel in your back" said Tyki. "A doctor was about to come in and remove them."

"Why can't you do it" asked Matt.

"This is going to require precision, something I'm not always great at when using my 'choose' ability." As Tyki said this, Matt relaxed a little when he remembered the explosions that occurred around him and him hitting a wall. As Matt relaxed a doctor walked in and looked at Tyki who simply nodded.

"Alright Matt, you might feel some discomfort" said the doctor as Matt's prison shirt was raised. Matt sat there and cringed in pain as he felt the pieces of shrapnel were removed from his body. After a few minutes the doctor stopped.

"Are we done" asked Matt as he breathed heavily.

"Not quite, there's still one more piece that managed to burrow its way near your heart" said the doctor. "This one will probably hurt a bit more than the rest, and it is important that you do not move at all." As soon as he said this he went to remove the shrapnel. The doctor was right, the pain was worse. Matt let out a single scream of pain before muffling himself against the table. He went to move a bit but Lulubell continued to hold his head down preventing any major movement.

* * *

><p>Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Matt felt the last piece of shrapnel leave his back and the pain that was there disappeared a little. Matt's back was stitched up and afterwards Matt was allowed to stand. He stretched a little bit before looking around. He then noticed that Lulubell was missing.<p>

"Where did Lulubell go" asked Matt.

"She's heading out now that her mission is complete" said Tyki. "I was about to go and send her off, come and join me."

"Must I" Matt complained.

"Yes, you must" said Tyki as he sort of nudged Matt forward to start walking. As they walked Matt thought of something.

"Hey Tyki, when did Lulubell actually find me" Matt asked.

"About a week or so ago" said Tyki.

"Why did it end up taking so long to actually rescue me?"

"We needed to gather together the third exorcists that the Earl took control of" said Tyki. "They were spread out and took a while to gather them."

"The third exorcists" Matt asked curiously. He knew who they were but he hadn't realized that they were still around.

"Yep, that's how we were able to break in. They were able to temporarily open a barrier that surrounded the headquarters which prevented the Earl from opening an ark gate in the area. If you recall, they did that before when Road and I rescued Walker from the Black Order."

"I remember who they are and what they did" said Matt.

"Ok, ok, I just wanted to make sure" said Tyki as they walked out into the main courtyard where they saw Lulubell about to enter an ark gate.

"Hey Lulubell" Tyki called out as they approached her. Lulubell stopped and turned around. "Hey make sure you let the Earl know Matt is ok." Lulubell nodded and turned to enter the ark.

"Lulubell, wait" said Matt which surprised both Lulubell and Tyki, even though Tyki was the only one to show that surprise. Lulubell turned around. Matt hesitated to get what he was going to say out.

"Thanks…Lulubell. For rescuing me and all that" said Matt. Lulubell nodded once again and entered the ark gate. Tyki turned to Matt, still surprised.

"Does this mean you've forgiven her finally" asked Tyki.

"Not a chance" said Matt as he turned to walk away. "But she at least deserved that much from me." Tyki shook his head and followed after Matt.

"By the way Tyki, where is everybody?"

"In the library I believe" said Tyki. "I take it you want to see them?"

"I do" said Matt. Tyki smiled and led Matt to the library.

* * *

><p>Tyki was the first to enter the library first which caught everyone's attention. And a moment later Matt entered. When Matt entered the room his eyes immediately lit up a little as he saw Lily running towards him. Lily jumped up and hugged Matt which caught him off guard a little. Jynx was the next to reach Matt but couldn't get to close due to Lily. Matt smiled as he held Lily up as he looked at Liza, Road, and Sheril who were sitting in the room.<p>

"Welcome home" Sheril said with a warm smile.

"It's good to be home" said Matt with a smile as he carried Lily and rejoined his family.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 100 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as it was a blast to write. I must admit that this one for some reason or another was a really fun chapter to write. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**Ok announcements time! I have once again updated my page about the progress of Betrayal of Madness as well as its release date, so I would recommend going and looking. I had made a lot of progress yesterday. However I am still in a bit of a jam when it comes to enemies, including creating abilities for the Noah that really haven't been described at all. However, progress is being made which in my opinion is a good thing!**

**One more quick announcement. The other day I was asked about the current status of Allen after his last appearance. Well as it turned out I had planned on mentioning it a while ago but it somehow got edited out before being published. So I have updated chapter 87 with that information. In case you're wondering exactly where to look, look for the conversation Matt and Bookman have before the Earl enters.**

**And one last reminder that starting tomorrow updates will most likely begin to slow down due to school. However I am going to try my best to continue updating as often as possible. So if I don't update one say, you know why. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	100. Finally Home

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt awoke the next morning to find that the room was fairly light out from the sun's rays that passed through the window. Matt blinked a few times. He was wondering if he was dreaming and that he would wake back up in his cell back at the Black Order headquarters. He went to rub his eyes when he felt some weight on his left arm. He looked over to see Lily, who was in her human form sleeping next to him, clinging onto his arm. He went to brush her hair but was stopped by another arm clinging onto it. He didn't have to look to know who it was and he smiled because that was all the evidence he needed to know that he wasn't dreaming. He moved his arm back and slowly worked his arms free of both the sleeping akuma and finally sat up in his bed. He rubbed his eyes as he looked around his room that he hadn't seen for a month. He quietly moved around Jynx and Lily and left his bed. He walked to his closet and pulled out a long robe of sorts that Tricia had given him shortly after the Battle of Mont Saint Michel. The robe was black, just like everything he wears over his clothing. Matt then grabbed his eye patch and placed it in his pocket, just in case he needed it and went to leave the room. As he opened the door he saw Road walking past his room. She heard the door open then walked back to him.

"Well you're up earlier than expected" Road said teasingly. "I would've thought you would sleep all day after the terrible conditions they made you live through."

"You'd be surprised what one good night of sleep can do for you" Matt smiled. Road then peered behind him to see Lily and Jynx still sleeping in his bed.

"Did you get embarrassed again" asked Road who was referring to Jynx.

"Not at all" said Matt. "In fact it was because of her clinging to me this morning that I realized that this wasn't all a dream."

"Why do you say that" Road asked curiously.

"Because whenever she's in my dreams she doesn't cling to me" Matt grinned and walked with Road as they went to the dining room to get something to eat. As they walked in they saw Sheril eating at the table.

"Morning Father" Road said happily as she skipped over to Sheril.

"Good morning Road" Sheril said happily. Sheril then noticed Matt. "Why hello Matt, it's good to see you up so early, though I think you should rest a little bit."

"I'm fine Father" said Matt as he walked over. "Actually I'm glad I got to see you right now. In the commotion of yesterday I wasn't able to really talk to you."

"Talk to me about what" Sheril asked, confused about what Matt wanted to talk about. Matt walked up to him with a big, innocent smile. But as he stood there, that expression immediately changed as Matt took his left hand and hit Sheril on the top of his head with the side of his fist. Sheril cringed in pain.

"How the hell can you call that a quick and easy mission" Matt yelled angrily. Sheril looked up at Matt, shocked that he had just him. He was also surprised that Matt had remembered that little detail that he said before sending Matt off.

"But it was supposed to be" said Sheril.

"Well that quick mission of yours took me 3 freaking months" said Matt as he continued to yell. "And let me tell you, there was nothing easy about the damn mission!"  
>"But that wasn't supposed to happen" said Sheril. "They weren't supposed to have so many there." Road looked at Matt a bit surprised. She wanted to laugh at her father but felt that she should restrain herself for the moment. She could see the anger in his eyes. She shook him a little and Matt looked at her. Matt could see the confused and surprised look in his eyes. He then closed them and took a deep breath before opening them again. When he did the anger had left his eyes.<p>

"I'm sorry for that, I've been holding in that anger for a month now" said Matt.

"No, it's fine. I understand why you did it" said Sheril as he rubbed his head. Matt smiled and took a seat at the table.

* * *

><p>A week passed and things were quite for Matt. A few days after his return, he had to visit the Earl to discuss his capture and imprisonment. Matt then spent the rest of his time relaxing, doing whatever he really wanted. However by the end of the week he was getting somewhat bored with relaxing. He was talking to Sheril in his office while also playing with Lily when Road walked in.<p>

"You wanted to see me Father" asked Road.

"Yes, the Earl has a mission for you. There are some exorcists searching for innocence in the town of Nice*, France. Try searching around the tower of Saint Francois."

"Sure thing" said Road.

"Can I go as well" asked Matt and Sheril looked at Matt.

"Matt you should be relaxing a bit before going off on another mission" said Sheril.

"But I'm bored out of my mind, I want to do something" Matt complained. "Just let me go with Road Father."

"Fine" said Sheril, not looking to argue. "Go ahead and go with her. Just make sure you stay safe."

"Not a problem" said Matt as he followed Road out of the room, leaving Lily with Sheril.

Matt and Road arrived in Nice an hour later. Matt was wearing his usual outfit with a long black coat. The two looked around and found it quite easy to find the tower. The tower of Saint Francois stood high above any of the buildings surrounding it. As the two Noah walked closer they ran into a group of 4 exorcists who were heading towards the tower as well.

"Hey Road you take the two on the left and I'll take the other two."

"Can I have some fun with them" asked Road.

"I don't see why not" said Matt and Road nearly jumped for joy before she took off towards the exorcists. Matt shook his head and followed after her.

The exorcists were about to reach the tower when Road and Matt intercepted them. Road quickly separated the 4 exorcists as Matt went after 2 of the exorcists. The first exorcist went to activate his innocence but was stabbed in the heart by Matt's arm which was now a sword. As Matt pulled out his sword he quickly cut the head off of the exorcist and the body slumped to the ground.

Matt turned his attention to the other exorcist who was attempting to flee in an alleyway. Matt walked into the alleyway and created a stone hand to grab the exorcist. He walked up to the frightened exorcist. Matt simply grinned as he had the hand extend the exorcist's limbs.

"I'm going to enjoy this exorcist" said Matt. "It's your bad luck that you ran into me when I'm still furious with the Order." Matt then cut off one of the exorcist's arms. The exorcist screamed in pain as Matt quickly cut off his other arm. In another quick motion Matt cut the legs off of the exorcist and the now limbless body fell to the ground, blood pouring out from his wounds. Matt kneeled down and grinned as he finally stabbed the exorcist in the heart after watching him suffer for a minute. Matt stood up and left the alleyway. AS he walked out he saw that the other two exorcists were dead and Road was walking out of the tower.

"Everything taken care of" Matt asked as Road walked up to him.

"Yep, I found the innocence and destroyed it" said Road. Matt smiled.

"Well that was amusing even though it didn't last that long" said Matt.

"Don't worry, I'm sure there will be plenty of missions for you soon where you can play with the exorcists" said Road as she smiled and summoned her door for them to enter and return home.

**A/N: Nice is actually pronounced "niece", just in case you were wondering.**

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 101 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. I found it difficult to decide where Matt and Road were to go on the mission and when I was looking up the tower of Saint Francois I discovered some great ideas for future chapters :D Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!<br>**

**Wow, it's hard to believe that it's been a hundred chapters. Feels like only yesterday I was talking about the 50****th**** chapter…where does the time go? Anyways I am so thankful once again to everyone who has read my story and is continuing to read it :D Thank you all so much for the reviews as well as they have been a real motivator to make it this far :D There is still so much more I want to write about before I end this story so expect many more updates to come :D**

**However, in honor of the hundredth chapter, I decided to do something a little special for you all. As you know, I am currently working on the story Betrayal of Madness. Well I am pleased to give you a little teaser of sorts for you to read :D I hope you enjoy it :D **

Betrayal of Madness chapter 1: When Your World Comes Crashing Down

Matt sat atop of a large stone pillar as he watched the battle below him. He didn't feel the need to participate quite yet seeing as Road seemed to be doing a good enough job fighting alongside the akumas below. However, after a few minutes it was becoming obvious that they were going to win, but still, it looked like they needed some help. Matt was about to stand up when an ark gate opened and about a dozen or so level 4 akuma came out of the gate. Matt was surprised when he saw them approaching him. One of the akuma approached him.

"Akuma, did the Earl send you" asked Matt. The akuma simply nodded. There was a short pause. "Well aren't you going to go and get in the fight?"

"No sir, that's not why we're here" said the akuma. Matt sighed and stood up.

"Fine, I guess I will go and help out" said Matt as he leapt off. He didn't realize that as he jumped the level 4 akuma's arm turned into a cannon and fired at Matt. As Matt fell to the ground he felt something coming from behind him. He turned and his eyes widened as the blast from the level 4 hit him and Matt went crashing to the ground in a cloud of smoke.

Road looked back and saw Matt hit the ground. She looked back up at the akuma who was now floating down to the ground with shock.

"Akuma, what the hell are you going" yelled Road as the akuma looked at her and aimed its cannon at her.

"The Millennium Earl has given us an order" said the akuma as the remaining akuma began to converge on her. "You, along with the Noah of Madness have been accused of treason and are to be executed on sight." The akuma was about to attack Road when a stone spike shot through his chest. The akuma looked down in shock before exploding. Road looked to see Matt slowly standing up, a look of anger on his face. Matt began to attack the remaining akuma who also began to attack him. Bit as they attacked, stone spikes would continue to destroy the akuma. Eventually, the only akuma remaining were the level 4 akumas that had arrived. All of them were aiming their cannons at Road. Road began to attempt to dodge the simultaneous attacks but as she did she saw Matt get in front of her and take every shot from the akumas. There were several explosions around Matt and the akumas lowered their weapons to see the result but as they did dozens of stone spikes shot out of the ground and pierced each akuma several time, destroying them. Road looked at Matt who was starting to become visible through the smoke. But then her eyes widened as she saw Matt look back at her and give a weak smile before collapsing to the ground.

**Well I hope you enjoyed that little teaser of the upcoming story! I know it's a little short but that is just how it is. I would like to say that this isn't the finished product so there is a very good chance that this might change a little bit before it is published. Again, I hope you enjoyed it and I look forward to publishing the story when it is finally ready, which should be in the next week or so. Check my page to see exactly when I believe the story will be ready to be published. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	101. The New Mission

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Road and Matt returned home from their mission. While it was a very simple mission, Matt found himself exhausted from it. As they walked Road began to notice this.

"Hey Matt, you alright" Road asked as they walked.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Matt said with a reassuring smile. "I'm just a little tired, that's all."

"Tired? But that mission was so simple. How can you be tired" Road asked, confused by why Matt could be tired.

"It could be because that father was right and I wasn't ready to go out on a mission yet. Perhaps I should've been resting."

"But you were the one who insisted on going" Road pointed out.

"I know, I just didn't realize that I would walk away so tired. I'm probably still healing a little bit from my imprisonment."

"That must suck" said Road.

"It could be worse" said Matt. "I could still be imprisoned. And besides despite my complaining, I actually enjoyed killing those exorcists."

"I saw that. You were particularly cruel to that last exorcist" Road said with a grin.

"I must admit that I did" grinned Matt. "I'm a bit upset that there weren't any finders around."

"I'm sure there will be more next time" said Road. "By the way Matt, can I have some candy" Road asked with begging eyes. Matt stared at her for a moment before sighing.

"Sure, why not" Matt said with a smile. Road jumped for joy as they went down to Matt's vault.

* * *

><p>The next day Matt woke up very sore, most likely a side effect from just how tired he felt yesterday. He slowly sat up and looked around. Lily and Jynx weren't in the room meaning it must have been around noon or so. Matt got out of bed and got changed and left his room to get something to eat. When he arrived at the dining room he saw that everyone was eating. A quick scan of the room showed however that there was one person aside from himself missing from the table.<p>

"Where's Liza" Matt asked as he walked to his seat next to Road.

"She's on a mission right now in South America" said Tyki.

"Is that so? I wonder when she will get back."

"Who knows, apparently the Earl asked to search a few areas to see if she could locate the South American Branch" said Tyki.

"I thought that the Earl knew where the branch was" said Matt.

"He knows where the old one was" said Sheril. "Apparently after our joint assault on all the branches, some of the more elusive branches changed locations. The South American Branch is one of them."

"The Earl believes that they have relocated somewhere in the Amazon Forest" said Tyki.

"So, judging by the sound of it, Liza will be gone for a while" said Matt.

"Well she's not searching all of it" said Tyki.

"Yeah Matt, geez sometimes you're so dumb" Road teased which awarded her a glare from Matt, which she returned by sticking her tongue out at him.

"Liza is only searching a small portion of it around a part of the Amazon River."

"So then how long would the mission be" Matt asked.

"A day, maybe 2" said Sheril.

"Well I can say I'm glad I don't have her mission right now" said Matt as he leaned back in his chair when some food arrived for him.

"Well I could have sent you" said Sheril. "The Earl wasn't specific on who would go but since I heard you were exhausted from yesterday I decided to send Liza, who volunteered herself."

"Well then it looks like I dodged a bullet there" said Matt as he began to eat.

* * *

><p>A few days had passed and things were going well for the Kamelot family. Liza had returned from her mission the previous day only to announce that she had found no signs of the South American Branch. However that day, Matt was feeling much better and because of that Sheril decided to send him on a mission.<p>

"So where exactly am I going" Matt asked as he sat down on the couch in Sheril's office.

"Paris" said Sheril.

"I didn't think that there was any innocence there" said Matt.

"Well apparently there wasn't. However, rumors are beginning to creep up regarding the Tower of Saint-Jaques. And apparently, the Black Order believes that these rumors may be related to innocence."

"Rumors" said Matt, a bit curious. "What kind of rumors?"

"Well, have you heard of a man named Nicolas Flamel" asked Sheril.

"I think so" said Matt as he thought about it. "He's that famous alchemist isn't he? The one that supposedly created the philosopher's stone?"

"That is the very one" said Sheril. "The man is buried under that tower and it is rumored that he was buried with that very stone which made him famous."

"And let me guess, that stone is innocence" said Matt.

"Well at the very least that's what the Black Order believes, which is more than enough for us to believe that this is the case."

"Why don't we send some akuma to retrieve it" asked Matt.

"Because the Earl doesn't want any mistakes" said Sheril.

"Why is that?"

"Well, you've heard what the philosopher's stone is supposed to do right?"

"Turn metals into gold and silver?"

"Correct, but it was highly believed that with that stone you could live forever. If that's the case and the innocence is capable of that much power without an accommodator, imagine just how much of a threat it would be if the Black Order got their hands on it and found it an accommodator." Matt thought about what Sheril said for a moment.

"That could change the entire outcome of the war" said Matt.

"Exactly" said Sheril. "That is why he's sending you on this mission."

"I see" said Matt. "Father, if this innocence is so powerful, do you think it might be the heart?"

"Perhaps, but from what we know, we have believed that the heart was an offensive weapon. The philosopher's stone would most certainly be a support innocence."

"I understand" said Matt. "So wait, why am I the only one going? If this mission is so important, why just send me?"

"The Earl is looking into some things that has the rest of us on stand-by. However, if you do have trouble with it, we have several informants in the area that would be able to contact us."

"Right, I understand. Then with that said I shall depart immediately" said Matt as he stood up from the couch and left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt took his time getting ready, changing into more suitable clothes to fight in as well as wearing his usual long black coat. He then immediately went to the ark gate to head to Paris.<p>

Matt found himself in an alleyway. As he walked out he noticed that he was very close to Notre Dame. Matt walked over to it and took a look before he began to look around for where he was supposed to go. Eventually though he saw the tip of the tower in the far distance. Matt decided to take his time as he walked down the streets of Paris. Eventually, he reached the outskirts the tower, which was located in a small park. The tower loomed above the trees that surrounded it. As Matt began to approach, he noticed another group walking towards it. He looked at them for a moment then grinned as he saw the Black Order symbol on their coats. At that moment, Matt knew that he was going to enjoy this mission.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 102 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as I had a fun time writing it. I remember seeing this tower a few times when I travelled to France (which is why I use so many French locations). And when I was looking it up the name Nicolas Flamel came up and I found that to be interesting. So I decided to add him to the story as the focal point of the chapter. That being said, the next chapter will be a fight chapter. And I'm thinking that I look further into this little Nicolas Flamel thing and see if I can't create a larger arc surrounding him. Only time will tell I suppose. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!**

**A quick announcement, my page has been updated with a new announcement. Anyone interested in my upcoming story Betrayal of Madness would do well to go there and read it. It will be near the top of the page so you shouldn't be able to miss it.**

**One last thing before I go, there is a new poll on my page. I guess you could say it's an information poll so I can see what you, the readers, think of the story. Basically I'm asking what you would like to read more of. I would appreciate it if you all went and voted as this will impact the way the story progresses (a little bit). Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	102. Skirmish at the Tower

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

As Matt began to approach the tower the group of exorcists and finders began to take notice of Matt but because Matt was in his human form they hesitated to attack him. As Matt walked though he grinned and took off his eye patch and began to go into his Noah form. As he did though he heard the sound of a gunshot and out of what seemed like nowhere Matt was his in his left shoulder. Because of the force of the shot, and the fact that the bullet couldn't pierce his shoulder, Matt was forced off the ground, spun a little then landed face down on the ground. Matt coughed a little as he rolled over to see several weapons pointed at him. After scanning the group quickly he realized that he was surrounded by finders. Matt raised his arms above his head, though still on the ground, looking like he was surrendering.

"You're coming with us" said one of the finders in the group surrounding Matt.

"Gentlemen please, there's no need for such violence" Matt said innocently. But as soon as he said this a large grin came across his face. Suddenly, the area surrounding Matt shot out giant curved spikes that almost resembled swords. All the finders that surrounded Matt were now being suspended in the air, their bodies pierced by the spikes. Matt slowly stood up and rolled his left shoulder a little. As he did he began to walk. A few of the stone spikes crumbled away revealing a way out. As he left the spikes he saw the remaining finders and exorcists standing around him, weapons ready.

"Sorry about that" said Matt, even though his tone showed no sign of sincerity. "But they were threatening me with weapons." The exorcists and finders didn't want to hear it though and soon they were attacking Matt. Matt just stood there and waited for the attack to reach him, however he looked as if he was scanning for something as he had his right eye closed. As they reached him though, Matt shot his eye open and easily dodged the first attack and immediately countered by grabbing the finder's weapon and pushed the weapon back into the face of the finder, causing him to stagger backwards a bit before a stone spike shot out of the ground and pierced through the finder.

The quick killing of the finder caused some hesitation amongst some of the finders. However, the exorcists didn't show such hesitation and continued their attack. Matt looked at the hesitating finders and grinned a little. He aimed his right hand and a spike shot out. However, an exorcist grabbed his hand and diverted the attack so the spike ended up hitting the ground. Matt looked at the exorcist.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you" said Matt. The exorcist gave a questioning look but immediately Matt's arm turned into a sword. Matt grinned as he cut the exorcist's hand in half and in the same motion, cause a large slash across the exorcist's chest. The exorcist took a step backwards, eyes wide as Matt quickly kicked him back. The exorcist hit and rolled across the ground a bit before coming to a stop. Matt began to walk towards the exorcist when the sound of another gunshot was heard. This time Matt was able to dodge it but as he did he was hit by a hammer-like innocence, which sent Matt crashing into the ground.

Matt began to stand back up when the large exorcist took another big swing at Matt. Matt went to block but it was too late. The hammer hit Matt square in the chest which sent him flying backwards. Matt's body skipped across the ground before he hit the tower itself. Matt slowly stood up and looked at the approaching exorcist. Matt shot several spikes out of the ground but the exorcist was able to dodge them all. Matt finally stood up and took a step backwards. The exorcist took a swing at Matt and made clean contact. This time however, the hammer went straight though Matt with the accompanying sound of breaking stone. Matt's body crumbled away revealing it to be nothing more than a clone. The exorcist's eyes widened as he felt a sword pierce his chest. He looked down to see it sticking through his heart.

In a final move of desperation, the exorcist elbowed behind him which managed to hit Matt in the face which caused his arm to pull out of his chest when he took a few steps back. The exorcist took one more swing at Matt who blocked the attack with his left hand. As he did this several stone spikes pierced through the exorcist's body. Life left his eyes as the spikes retracted and the exorcist fell to the ground.

Matt turned to see that most of the finders were fleeing from the area while he noticed one finder talking into a phone on his back. Matt raised his hand and shot a stone spike which ended up going straight through the finder's mouth. Matt shot 4 more shots, just because he could, all hitting the finder in random body parts before a 5th shot hit him in the head.

Matt was about to turn around and walk into the tower when he noticed that the exorcist that he cut earlier was still alive. Matt walked up to him but as he did a gunshot went off. Matt dodged and aimed at the roof of a building nearby. He shot a spike at the building and soon after the shot he saw a body fall from the roof.

"Don't think I forgot about you" Matt said to himself and he then began to walk to the exorcist. He looked down on the exorcist who looked like he was in immense pain. He knelt down and looked at the exorcist when he saw something partially showing in his pocket. He pulled it out to see that it was a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Matt grinned and looked at the exorcist.

"You smoke" Matt asked despite knowing the answer. The exorcist said nothing as Matt pulled out a cigarette and lit it and put it in the exorcist's mouth. The exorcist looked at Matt with a confused look. Matt chuckled a little as he lit another cigarette. "Consider it a last request" said Matt as he inhaled the cigarette. The exorcist just looked at Matt as he put the pack of cigarettes and lighter in his pocket, stand up and walk away. As Matt walked towards the tower several spikes pierced the exorcist, including one spike to the head, killing him instantly. Matt grinned a little, letting some of the inhaled smoke leave his mouth before completely exhaling.

* * *

><p>Matt entered the tower to see a human who looked like he was in charge of the tower. Matt opened the door to the crypts when the man spoke up.<p>

"Hey, that place is off limits. Where do you think you're going" asked the man as he walked up to Matt. Matt simply raised his hand and shot a stone spike at the man. The spike hit the man in the head and he dropped to the ground dead.

Matt continued down into the crypt and began to search the area for where Nicolas Flamel was buried. After a few minutes of searching he finally found a stone casket with his name on it.

"Damn, I really hope this thing is innocence" said Matt as he opened the casket.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 103 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading as this one was particularly interesting to write. To be honest I find that this entire Nicolas Flamel arc to be very interesting. The arc will continue into tomorrow obviously and depending on how it goes I may even continue it (I have a few ideas of how I could do that). Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!**

**Announcement time! First off, there is a new poll on my page, please go vote on it, it will help me out a lot :D **

**Also, information on the major release date of Betrayal of Madness has been updated, including when the first chapter will be debuting! So please go to my page and find out. Anyways that's it for today, until next time!**


	103. Retrieving the Stone

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt opened the stone casket and looked into it. Amongst the decomposed remains were two items. One was a book and the other was a very tiny emerald colored stone. Matt reached in and picked up the tiny stone, it was so small that he could hold it between his thumb and index finger.

"This is it" Matt asked himself, unimpressed. "This is the philosopher's stone? It doesn't look that impressive." Matt stared at it and held the tiny stone in his palm. It didn't look like much but as he held he began to feel weird. It wasn't a bad kind of weird, in fact it was the opposite; he felt better. Matt couldn't describe what he was feeling; he just knew that holding the stone gave him energy, new life almost. Matt shook his head to regain his focus. He pulled out a small bag and placed the stone in it and tightly sealed it.

Matt then picked up the rather large book with his right hand. He went to open it when he realized that he still had the lit cigarette in his hand. Realizing that putting that near an ancient book would probably end up engulfing the book in flames, Matt quickly finished the cigarette and dropped the butt of the cigarette on the ground. Matt blew out the last of the cigarette smoke as he brushed of the top of the book. The word 'Codex' was written in big bold letters on the book. Matt then carefully opened the book. Quickly scanning the book Matt realized that this was all the knowledge and research Nicolas Flamel had done throughout his life, including the philosopher's stone. Matt decided to keep the book with him as he left the crypt.

Matt exited the tower and quickly looked around; he had caused quite the mess. By this point civilians were beginning to become curious and were walking out, trying to figure out what happened. Matt closed his right eye and used the enhanced aura vision he got with his right eye to scan to see of there were any reinforcing Black Order forces. And surely enough he could see a force of maybe 10-20 heading his way. At the same time an ark gate opened. Matt sighed a little but wanted to leave a little 'gift' for the Black Order for when they arrived. Matt placed his left hand against the stone tower and suddenly the sound loud cracking could be heard. After a moment the cracking suddenly became extremely loud as the tower began to lean and eventually fall over. As the tower fell it managed to land on top of a building, completely destroying it and heavily damaging the surrounding buildings. This caused an immediate panic as all the civilians that were around the area began to flee. Matt gave a large grin as he walked through the ark gate.

* * *

><p>Matt arrived back at Mont Saint Michel and immediately went to Sheril's office. When he arrived Sheril looked up and looked as if he was surprised.<p>

"Surprised to see me Father" Matt asked jokingly as he walked towards Sheril's desk.

"Well a little, I just assumed you would've taken longer" said Sheril.

"Now that hurts" Matt teased, though he did give Sheril an offended look. Matt then placed the book he had brought back on Sheril's desk. Sheril stared at the book for a moment with a confused look.

"What's with the book" Sheril asked.

"Looks like Flamel's research notes" said Matt. "I found it in his casket."

"I see" said Sheril. "Well I'm sure someone will take a look at it. Now on to the mission, how did it go?"

"It went well" Matt said with a smile. "I found the stone and brought it back." Matt then pulled out the small bag and placed it on the desk. Sheril once again gave a confused look as he opened the bag and looked in.

"Are you sure this is it" asked Sheril.

"I think so" said Matt. "I found it right where you said it would be."

"But it's so small."

"I know, I thought the same thing" said Matt.

"Well then, I suppose I will send this to the Earl immediately for research" said Sheril as he closed the bag.

"Research" Matt asked in confusion. "Aren't we going to destroy it?"

"In due time but the Earl said he wanted to examine this one."

"Does he think it's the heart? I mean I know we talked about it, but what about the Earl?"

"The Earl doesn't believe that the philosopher's stone is the heart. Instead he thinks it's one of the more powerful pieces of innocence."

"So, it's powerful but he's not destroying it? That makes no sense" said Matt.

"I understand, to be honest I myself don't really know what he is up too here" said Sheril. "But I'm sure he'll explain in due time."

"Right, I won't hold my breath then" said Matt.

"Now Matt, who are we to question what he does? If he doesn't want to tell us then I'm sure he has a very good reason why."

"I know that, doesn't mean it's not annoying" said Matt as he walked out of Sheril's office.

Matt made his way outside to the grassy courtyard where he saw Tyki smoking. He walked over to him as he had nothing better to do.

"Hey Matt" said Tyki when he noticed Matt approaching. "How did the mission go?"

"Fine I suppose" said Matt. "I found the innocence and brought it back. Took out a few exorcists and finders along the way."

"Sounds like a good time to me" Tyki smirked.

"Indeed" said Matt. Tyki noticed that Matt was lost in thought.

"Something on your mind" asked Tyki as he began to smoke again.

"Just wondering why the Earl wants to do research on that stupid piece of innocence" said Matt.

"I'm sure he has his reasons" said Tyki.

"I know, Father already said that" said Matt as he looked out into the ocean. "But I still can't help but wonder."

"I know what you mean" said Tyki. "It can be annoying at times but still, if it was important enough to tell us I'm sure he would have and will."

"Yeah I guess you're right" said Matt. It was at this time, Tyki noticed something in Matt's pocket.

"What do you have there" asked Tyki. Matt looked at Tyki then down to his pocket.

"Nothing much just a pack of cigarettes I pulled off of an exorcist" said Matt.

"Are they any good?"

"I suppose so but I'm not exactly the best judge of these kinds of things" said Matt as he held out the pack to Tyki. "You want them?"

"Not really, you can keep them" Tyki smiled as he finished his cigarette. "I've got plenty of packs, I don't need any more for a while now."

"Fine, I don't know what to do with them so I figured I'd give them to you."

"You can smoke them, after all that's what they are for" Tyki answered, a bit sarcastically.

"I know that" said Matt, not appreciating the sarcasm. "But it's not like I would smoke them all at once. You know I'm not a big smoker."

"Yeah, yeah, I know" said Tyki as both he and Matt noticed a maid walk out.

"Yes, can we help you" asked Tyki as the maid approached.

"I apologize for interrupting you but Sheril wishes to see Matt immediately" said the maid.

"But I just got back from talking to him" said Matt. "What on earth could he want?"

"He didn't give me any specifics. He just said it was urgent" said the maid. Matt then looked at Tyki who nodded. Matt placed the pack of cigarettes back into his pocket and quickly walked off to talk to Sheril.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 104 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter. This one took me a long time to write but I needed to find a way to move into a new arc that I'm planning that should be very interesting :D I don't have all the details worked out, however, I will say though that the next arc will have a large impact on him, so look forward to it :D Please let me know what you think of the chapter!**

**Also, in regards to Betrayal of Madness, the release of the first chapter may be pushed back a day (if you've read my page, which if you haven't please do). The reason is that the first chapter may be a bit too long for my liking and I am working on splitting it up into parts. I will keep you updated as it progresses and please go to my page to see when Betrayal of Madness begins :D**  
><strong>Also, the poll on my page is still active. Please go vote on it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!<strong>


	104. Delivery

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt quickly made his way back to Sheril's office. He didn't know why he was called back so suddenly but he figured it must be important. As Matt entered Sheril's office he noticed that Sheril was reading the Codex with great interest.

"Father, what is it" Matt asked. "Why have you called me back so quickly so suddenly?" Sheril looked up from the book.

"Matt, did you get the chance to read this at all when you retrieved it" asked Sheril.

"I quickly skimmed it" said Matt. "I noticed that it mentioned the philosopher's stone so I decided I would bring it back with me."

"Well I'm glad you did" said Sheril as he marked a few pages in the book and closed it. "Matt, can you deliver the Codex to the Earl?" Matt was taken aback by Sheril's request.

"That's it? The way the maid made this sound, I figured that you needed me for something important" said Matt with a bit of an upset tone.

"This is very important. I had a servant deliver the stone to the Earl after you gave it to me but I didn't give this book to him because I didn't think it was important. However, after examining this book a little bit I think that the Earl would want this immediately." Matt shook his head a little and let out a sigh.

"Then why don't you send out another servant" Matt asked.

"Because there are only a few servants that know where to find the Earl in the ark and at the moment they are all busy."

"Busy? Busy with what?"

"They are running errands" said Sheril. "And they won't be back until the day after tomorrow."

"What could they possibly be doing that is so important?"

"Matt, have you forgotten that I am still the Prime Minister of Portugal? Even though I'm not living in the country I still have a job to do. Those servants are delivering important letters."

"Unbelievable" Matt said in a disapproving tone, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger of his right hand. "Father, why would you do something like that?"

"I didn't think I would need more than 1 messenger to the Earl" Sheril admitted.

"Fine, I'll deliver the book" said Matt as he walked over and picked up the book.

"Thank you Matt" Sheril said with a smile. "Please get it to him quickly."

"I'll get it to him soon, but I need to stop by my room first."

"Make it quick" said Sheril.

"No promises" said Matt as he left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt was walking down the hallway to his room. As he was opening the door he saw Road walking down the hallway. Road noticed Matt and smiled and quickly skipped over to him.<p>

"So, you're back from your mission" Road asked as Matt opened the door.

"Yeah I am" said Matt as he entered his room. Road followed immediately behind him.

"So, how did you go? Did you find the innocence?"

"Everything went smoothly, though some damn finder shot me in the shoulder which ruined my coat and shirt" said Matt as he took of his coat and tossed it onto the armchair, then placed the Codex on the table and began to take off his shirt as he approached his closet. Lily, who was lying down on Matt's bed in her dragon form watched Matt the entire time. "The innocence was also really unimpressive looking."

"Really, why is that?"

"It was really small" said Matt as he finally took off his shirt and tossed it onto his bed and began searching his closet for a new shirt to wear.

"How small are we talking here" asked Road. Matt then showed Road how large it was by holding out his hand out showing the size, which was very small.

"Wow that really is tiny."

"Yeah I know" said Matt as he pulled out 2 shirts, one under shirt and a white buttoned shirt. Matt quickly put on the shirts and began buttoning up.

"You seem to be in a bit of a rush" Road pointed out.

"Yeah, Father has asked me to deliver that book over there to the Earl. He said that it is important."

"I've never seen this book before" said Road as she looked at it on the table.

"Well of course, that is a personal journal of sorts of Nicolas Flamel, the man whose corpse held possession of the philosopher's stone."

"So you like taking things from dead people" Road grinned, obviously teasing him.

"Not personally, but still, if every grave had innocence who knows, maybe I would" Matt joked as he walked over and picked up the book.

"You're heading out now" Road asked in a upset and disappointed tone.

"Yes I am why do you ask?"

"Well I was hoping you would open the vault and get me some candy" Road said innocently.

"Perhaps when I get back" said Matt. "I shouldn't be long." Road pouted a little. "Oh don't give me that look, I told you I'll be back in a little while."

"Fine" said Road, continuing to pout. "Can we play a game as well when you get back" Road asked changing her look to a hopeful one.

"That's less likely" said Matt. "I'm not in the mood to get hurt right now" Matt smirked. Road instantly went back to pouting. Matt playfully hit the top of her head. "Tell you what, you entertain Lily while I'm gone and I'll consider it." Road looked over to Lily who was still staring at Matt.

"Deal" said Road as she skipped over to Lily.

"Road, do you think you can summon your door so I can get to the Earl a bit more quickly?"

"Sure thing" said Road as her door rose from the ground and opened for Matt.

"Thank you very much" Matt said with a smile as he entered the door which then closed behind him.

* * *

><p>Matt entered the room with many phones in the ark and as usual he saw the Earl answering as many of the ringing phones as he could. The Earl hung up on of the phones and was about to pick up another when he noticed Matt standing there.<p>

"Ah Matt, so good to see you again" said the Earl as he stood up straight.

"Same here Lord Millennium" Matt said in respect.

"I must thank you for retrieving that innocence as quickly as you did" the Earl said cheerfully. "It was very important that the Black Order didn't get their hands on it."

"You're welcome" said Matt. "My Lord, if I may ask, why didn't you want to destroy the innocence?"

"In due time I will explain, but for now know this. This piece of innocence os very powerful and appears to have special properties that distinguishes itself from other innocence. I don't believe it is the heart though."

"What are the special abilities" Matt asked.

"Like I said, I'll explain in due time. Now what brings you to me?"

"Father has asked me to give you this book" said Matt as he held it out. "I recovered this at the same time I recovered the innocence. Apparently, he has marked some pages for you to read." The Earl took the book and opened it to the marked pages. The Earl's eyes widened a little.

"Well now, that is interesting" said the Earl.

"I haven't read it so what does it say?"

"I will explain in a moment" said the Earl as he closed the book. "I hate to do this to you Matt but I need you to go on another mission."

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 105 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed this chapter as it was a bit of a pain to write. I apologize that this one didn't progress very far but I needed a little extra time to think about the next arc which will begin next chapter. Please let me know what you think of the chapter.<strong>

**Also, I should mention that Betrayal of Madness' first chapter has been delayed until tomorrow. This is mainly because I haven't finished getting it ready. However, be prepared for it tomorrow! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	105. A new Noah

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt looked at the Earl with a little bit of disbelief.

"Seriously" Matt asked in disbelief. "But my Lord, I've only just returned from my last mission."

"I realize that and I apologize for this however I need you to do this for me" said the Earl. Matt wanted to argue this but realized that it was pointless.

"Fine" Matt said in defeat. "What is it you need me to do?"

"Very good" the Earl said happily. "I'll tell you about your mission in a minute, but first I need to discuss a few things with you."

"Alright then" said Matt, curious about what the Earl wanted to tell him.

"Follow me then" said the Earl as he left the room. Matt followed closely behind him.

In the dim hallways of the ark Matt wondered about what the Earl wanted to tell him.

"Tell me Matt, what do you know of the philosopher's stone" asked the Earl.

"I know that it's a small stone that the alchemist Nicolas Flamel had. It's rumored to turn metals into gold and silver. But more importantly it is said that the stone had healing abilities and the one who held the stone could live forever."

"You know a great deal more than I thought you would" the Earl said, a bit surprised.

"It is also a piece of innocence, if I'm not mistaken" said Matt.

"Correct, that's what I believe as well. A very powerful piece of innocence capable to reviving the dead healing the wounded" said the Earl. "However, throughout its history, this piece of innocence has never had an accommodator."

"Seriously? I find that hard to believe" said Matt.

"It's true" said the Earl. "However, it turns out that this specific piece of innocence doesn't need an accommodator in order to use at least a weaker version of its abilities."

"I don't understand" said Matt.

"It's quite simple really. Matt, did you feel any strange sensation when you first held the philosopher's stone?"

"As a matter of fact I did" said Matt, remembering back to only a few hours ago.

"And what did it feel like?"

"It felt weird, my body felt lighter, as if everything that was burdening me was being lifted."

"Exactly" said the Earl. "This innocence can still perform incredible things even without an accommodator. And it also shows that being a Noah doesn't affect it. However, a Noah will never become its accommodator."

"So we got this stone to help us" Matt asked.

"No, just 1" said the Earl.

"What do you mean" Matt asked, completely confused by what the Earl said.

"I will tell you about that when we arrive at our destination" said the Earl. "Right now though, I will discuss your mission with you."

"Sure" said Matt, still wondering what the Earl meant by only 1.

"Well the book you gave me as I'm sure you are aware of by now contains the knowledge of Nicolas Flamel. The page that Sheril highlighted however deals with something called the Elixir of Life" said the Earl.

"I've never heard of it" said Matt. "What does it do?"

"Exactly what the name implies. It gives life. Nicolas Flamel ground up parts of the philosopher's stone and added it to several elixirs. Because of that, the elixirs basically became a liquid philosopher's stone."

"How is that possible" said Matt. "How can innocence be ground up?"

"Well I think it's in a similar way to how we destroy innocence. However Flamel must have figured out a way to break of parts of the stone. I'm still trying to figure it out myself to be honest" said the Earl as he stopped walking. "We've arrived." Matt looked around and realized that he had never traveled to this part of the ark before.

"What are we doing here" Matt asked.

"You will be going on this mission with someone special" said the Earl.

"Who" asked Matt.

"A new Noah" said the Earl. Matt looked at the Earl with both a surprised and confused face.

"A new Noah? Why haven't you told this to anyone?"

"Because he's not ready to meet everyone" said the Earl. "He has a…unique ability, one that can hurt other Noah if not careful. However, he does need some combat experience and you are probably the best choice in the matter."

"Are you sure we should be sending out someone who has the potential of hurting us" Matt asked.

"It's a necessary risk" said the Earl. "As we speak, I have Skulls running tests on the philosopher's stone to see if they can turn it into a seal for him. However, we don't know yet if we place the stone into a Noah it will have a similar effect to your cursed arm."

"I see" said Matt as he looked at a wooden door.

"Go and introduce yourself to him and meet me back in the phone room" said the Earl. Matt nodded and the Earl walked away. Matt politely knocked on the door before opening it.

* * *

><p>Matt looked around the room, it was fairly empty with not many decorations or furniture meaning what the Earl said must have been true about him being new. He noticed a person sitting on the bed in the corner of the room. The person looked like he was 20 at best. He appeared to look like any other Noah, he had short black hair, gray skin and when the boy looked at Matt he could see his golden eyes along with the stigmata on his forehead.<p>

"Who are you" the man asked in a nervous voice. Matt smiled and walked over to him.

"My name is Matt Kamelot, but you can just call me Matt" Matt said in a friendly voice. "I am also known as the Noah of Madness." The boy looked at Matt with confused eyes. "And what is your name?"

"Jacob" said the man. "Jacob O'Connor."

"Well Jacob it's a pleasure to meet you" said Matt as he extended out his right hand to shake it. The man seemed hesitant. "What's wrong? Can't shake my hand?"

"I can't touch you" said Jacob.

"Now why is that" asked Matt. Jacob then revealed his arms to show that they looked decayed. There were chunks of flesh connected by tendons but not much else. Matt wondered how they could even move but didn't question it too much. However, his hand did retract a little when he saw hit arms and hands.

"That it" said Matt after regaining his composure and extended his right hand again.

"But I will hurt you if I touch you with these hands" said Jacob.

"Ok then" said Matt and he pulled back his right and extended his left. "Try now."

"But…I don't want to hurt you" said Jacob.

"Don't worry about me" Matt said in a friendly tone. Jacob hesitated then shook Matt's hand. He waited for Matt to scream in pain but the scream never came. He looked at Matt with confusion.

"How" asked Jacob. Matt raised his arm and pulled back his sleeve revealing his cursed arm.

"This arm is cursed and long story short, it can't be harmed in anyway" said Matt. After showing Jacob he rolled back his sleeve.

"When did you get that?"

"About a year ago now" said Matt thinking back to the fight where it all began.

"How long have you been with these people?"

"I've been with them since I was 10 so about 13 years now" said Matt. Jacob looked surprised.

"But you don't look a day over 17."

"Well I stopped aging at 16" said Matt. "And because you've awakened you won't age either. However, you can ask me questions later because the Earl has a mission for both of us" said Matt as he used his left hand to help Jacob up.

"A mission? Like what?"

"You will see in due time" Matt said with a smile. "Consider this your right of passage into the family." Matt then led Jacob out of his room and began to bring him to the Earl.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 106 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed this chapter as I had a blast writing it! I found it sort of difficult to create Jacob, and I haven't really ironed out all the details about him. So there may be changes within the next few days regarding him. Of course, I will let you all know what the changes are if any are made.<strong>

**So there are a few announcements for today. Well I suppose there is one big one. Betrayal of Madness' first chapter is up! I would love it if everyone would go and read it! And of course, please review it :D I have decided to create an introduction arc for it just to sort of ease people into the story so I hope you like it :D **

**Also, I have changed the percentage bar on my page to represent the progress of the next chapter. Go to my page and see where it is at. Once it reaches about 90% expect the chapter the next day :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	106. Return to Paris

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt and Jacob walked down the hallway on their way to the Earl. It was an awkwardly silent walk as Jacob really didn't say much, he mainly looked confused. Matt decided he needed to break some of the tension before they reached the Earl.

"So Jacob, when did you awaken" Matt asked with a smile.

"Just a little over 2 weeks ago" said Jacob. "That's when the Earl found me."

"I see, so I take it you're still adjusting to being a Noah?"

"Yeah" said Jacob. "I'm think this is all a dream and that I am going to wake up." Matt chuckled a little bit at what Jacob said which confused him.

"Yeah I remember that feeling" said Matt, remembering his past. "It goes away though don't worry." Jacob said nothing after Matt said this. There was an awkward pause. "You don't talk much do you?"

"What? Oh sorry, I was just thinking" said Jacob.

"About what" asked Matt.

"About that scar on your eye."

"Oh that" said Matt, masking the bitter and sad feeling of the memories that cropped up. "It's a fairly long story. But I'll tell you it sometime."

"Touchy subject" asked Jacob, realizing that Matt was hiding something.

"You could say that" said Matt. "You will find that many of my scars tell a story."

"You have more" Jacob asked in disbelief.

"Yes" said Matt. "I got many of them on missions."

"You mean missions like what we are going on now?"

"Sort of" said Matt. "The other Noah will say I'm a bit, well, reckless so my scars are for the most part the result of stupid mistakes." Matt laughed a little. "Don't worry though, you'll be fine on your first mission." As he said this they reached the room with many phones and entered.

The Earl was waiting for them when Matt and Jacob entered the room.

"Welcome my children" the Earl said in a pleasant voice. "I hope you two got off on the right foot."

"Indeed my Lord" said Matt.

"Excellent! Well then now that you two have met I will give you your mission."

"Where are we heading?"

"You are heading back to Paris" said the Earl.

"Already? Why" asked Matt. "If I had known that I was going to leave Paris then go back a few hours later then I wouldn't have even left!"

"Now, now, Matt" said the Earl. "This is very important. You two are going to recover the Elixir of Life."

"Is that so" asked Matt. "And where exactly is it the elixir?"

"Below Notre Dame Cathedral" said the Earl.

"You have got to be" said Matt in disbelief. "I walked past there when I arrived to get the philosopher's stone!"

"Strange how you can walk by things and not even notice" said the Earl who looked at Jacob. "Jacob, you haven't said much. Are you paying attention?"

"Yes sir" said Jacob.

"Good because this is a very important mission. I need you 2 to retrieve the elixir and return it here immediately."

"My Lord, will I believe Jacob should go on a mission, Paris will be crawling with Black Order forces and Notre Dame is not far from where I just got back from."

"It's fine" said the Earl. "If you two run into some exorcists, he can use the opportunity to gain some combat experience." Matt wanted to question the Earl's choice but decided that doing so wouldn't change anything."

"Very well, we will return as quickly as we can" said Matt, and he took Jacob and left the room.

Matt was walking with Jacob towards an ark gate hub within the ark.

"I'm sorry, this is going to be a tougher mission than I thought" said Matt.

"It's fine" said Jacob. "What he said is right. It looks like I don't have a choice but fight in this war and if I don't learn soon then I don't think I will last long." Matt was surprised by Jacob's resolve for going on this mission. "Um Matt."

"Yes?"

"How did you do on your first ever mission?"

"My first mission? Well, on my first mission I ended up getting stabbed and blacking out" said Matt. He looked at Jacob who seemed to have lost all of his resolve and scarred out of his mind. Matt laughed and patted him on the back with his left hand. "Don't you worry about a thing. I was a special case. You will be fine."

"But, you said you were stabbed" said Jacob.

"Yes I was but you don't have to worry. I will make sure nothing bad happens to on the mission" Matt said with a smile as the two walked through the ark gate.

* * *

><p>Matt and Jacob walked out of the ark gate into the streets of Paris. The ark gate immediately closed behind him. Matt could instantly tell that he was in the same area where Road's door left him as he could see the towers of Notre Dame above the buildings there. As Matt and Jacob walked into the plaza in front of Notre Dame they were surprised to see that the area was pretty much empty with the exception of a few civilians.<p>

"Just stay calm" said Matt. "You're still in your Noah form but as long as you don't draw attention to yourself then I don't think people will notice you." Jacob nodded and followed Matt.

The two entered Notre Dame and made their way into the basement of the cathedral. It was dimly lit and very musty.

"Listen, we need to find the elixir" said Matt. "Look for anything regarding Nocolas Flamel."

"Sure thing" said Jacob and he began searching the basement for the elixir. After about 30 minutes of searching Jacob called out to Matt. "I think I found something Matt!" Matt quickly ran over to Jacob who pointed to a very old box. On the box was the name Nicolas Flamel. Matt gently pulled out the box and opened it. Inside were a dozen bottles, all of which contained a green liquid.

"This seems too convenient but it's the only liquid in this entire place" said Matt. Matt then noticed a small note tucked away in between the bottles. Matt opened the letter and was surprised to see that it was a letter to what appeared to be a priest who once ran the cathedral. The letter asked the priest to hide the elixir so that nobody could use it. "Yeah this is definitely it" said Matt. "It looks like this was put here for safe keeping and was forgotten about. Jacob, start putting the bottles into the bag" said Matt. Jacob immediately began removing the bottles from the box and into a bag, making sure to cushion them so that they wouldn't break if the bag was dropped. After a minute, Jacob was finished and the two began to leave the cathedral.

"So far so good" said Matt as they reached the main floor. "Now all we have to do is summon an ark gate and we're….oh crap." As Matt said this he opened the door to see several finders and exorcists heading towards Notre Dame.

"Matt, what do we do" asked Jacob.

"Let me take care of this. You just stay away from these people" said Matt as he ran out to meet the attackers. As Matt ran he leapt into the air and turned his right arm into a sword and landed on top of a finder. As he did he stabbed him in the heart. Matt rolled off the finder when he hit the ground and as he stood up, slashed another finder across his chest. He then kicked the finder to the ground and turned his arm back to normal. As he did he shot a stone spike at an exorcist, who was trying to attack him. The spike hit him in the head and caused the exorcist to fall on his back dead.

Matt then turned to see if Jacob was alright and his eyes widened as he saw Jacob running from an exorcist. Matt ran towards them hoping to intercept the exorcist. Jacob then found himself at the edge of the river Seine. He looked down and saw the large drop. At the same time the exorcist swung at Jacob who managed to block the attack but was sent over the edge from the force of the hit.  
>"NO" Matt yelled as several stone spikes pierced the exorcist. Matt then saw Jacob's hands on the edge of the cliff. He ran over to him but just as he reached the hands slipped off. Matt leaned over the side instantly and grabbed Jacob's wrist with his right hand without thinking. Jacob looked at Matt with wide eyes.<p>

"Why would you grab me with your normal hand" Jacob asked in shock.

"What no 'thanks'" Matt said sarcastically as he began to pull Jacob up. As he did though he began to feel a lot of pain in his right hand. "I did it because you're family, and I said I would protect you didn't I?" The pain increased to when Matt finally pulled Jacob up he was in unbelievable pain. He instantly let go of Jacob and let out a scream of pain as the pain just continued to get worse. Then it felt like his skin was burning away and when he looked at his arm he literally saw his skin melting away. He let out another scream of pain before everything went black.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 107 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as this one was a lot of fun to write. I decided to make it so there were multiple elixirs but I will try to explain that in the next chapter :D Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**So if you haven't heard yet, Betrayal of Madness' first chapter has been published! If you haven't read it yet you can go to my page to find it. I plan on having the second chapter ready by later this afternoon (my time) or early tomorrow so keep an eye out :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	107. The Elixir of Life

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt's eyes slowly opened to find himself lying on his bed in his room. He winced a little at the light that shined in through the window; it was giving him a slight headache. He began looking around to notice that Lily and Jynx were sleeping in the other bed in his room which Matt thought was odd as this never happened. He sat up on his bed and began rubbing his eyes to help him wake up. As he did though, he noticed something shiny on his right wrist, just under hid palm. Matt looked at what it was to see that it was a gem of some sorts that was the same color as the cross on his left arm, blood red.

"What the heck is this" Matt asked himself as he looked at the gem. He went to touch it to see if he wasn't hallucinating it and as he poked it he realized that it was real. Matt then went to see if he could pull out the gem

"I wouldn't do that if I were you" said a voice from the other end of Matt's room. He looked over to see the Earl sitting in an armchair drinking a glass of tea.

"M-My Lord" Matt asked, not knowing why he was hear or what he was talking about.

"Good morning my child, I must say you have a very strong habit of making me worry" said the Earl as he placed his tea on a table and walked over to Matt.

"I'm sorry to make you worry" said Matt, a bit ashamed of himself.

"Don't worry about a thing" said the Earl with a smile.

"Alright then" said Matt. "By the way my Lord, what is with this gem in my wrist?" Matt held out his wrist to show the Earl.

"Don't you recognize it" asked the Earl. Matt stared at it the gem. It looked familiar but for some reason he couldn't place his finger on what it was; perhaps this was because of his headache.

"I'm not sure" said Matt.

"Come now, you only just saw it a day ago, how could you forget" said the Earl. Matt's eyes widened as he looked at the gem then back at the Earl.

"The philosopher's stone" asked Matt.

"The very same" said the Earl.

"I don't get it, why did you place innocence within me" asked Matt, confused by all of this.

"Well, it's because of what happened to your arm. As you know, despite it being innocence, the philosopher's stone is capable of healing people. Even if they aren't accommodators. Well, I was going to give the stone to Jacob to see if having the stone could suppress his abilities, and therefore no longer a threat to us on a day-to-day basis." Matt was having a hard time wrapping his head around this.

"So then why me" asked Matt.

"Because Jacob told me to use the stone on you" said the Earl. "When you grabbed Jacob's hand, he accidently used an ability called 'corrupted touch'. Basically, it kills off anything it touches. Using you as an example, he touched your hand and because of that, your entire arm fell victim to the touch. Now it looks deformed and for lack of a better term, gross." Matt stared at his hand which looked normal apart from the stone in his wrist.

"So where does the philosopher's stone come in" asked Matt.

"The stone's healing capabilities rejuvenates your arm so it looks like it used to. If the stone were to be removed then your arm will go back to the way it is supposed to look now, a deformed mess."

"So why is it red?"

"Precautionary measures" said the Earl. "It's a seal designed to start working if the innocence in your arm ever decides to attempt to exorcize you."

"I see, so what about Jacob? If he doesn't have the stone then how can we help him?"

"With the elixir of life you found. Because there were so many bottles of it we were able to give him a temporary remedy based off of the seal in your arm. He can of course remove his seal when fighting." Matt sat in his bed looking at his arm, he was grateful for what Jacob had done for him and he had to thank him sometime. Then Matt thought of something.

"Lord Millennium, does the elixir of life have the same healing properties as the stone" asked Matt.

"Yes it does" said the Earl.

"Could you bring me a bottle at some point?"

"Why do you need a bottle of the elixir" asked the Earl.

"I want to try something" said Matt. The Earl realized what Matt was trying to say though.

"I understand, I'll have a bottle brought to you immediately" said the Earl as he walked out of the room. Matt just sat there for a moment before lying back down on his bed, staring at the red stone in his wrist. He still felt sleepy so after a few minutes of looking at the stone he fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The next day Matt woke up to find that Lily and Jynx had found their way back into his bed. He smiled as he patted both of them on the head before quietly getting out of bed. As he got changed and went to leave his room he noticed a bottle sitting on the table with a note attached to it. It was from the Earl saying that the bottle is the elixir of life; it had just been transferred to a newer bottle. Matt smiled and put the note down. He knew what he was going to do with it but he had something he had to take care of first. Matt then left his room and headed for the ark gate.<p>

Matt entered the ark and went immediately to Jacob's room. He knocked and opened the door. Matt found Jacob sitting in an armchair reading a book. Jacob looked at Matt and smiled.

"Hey Matt, it's good to see you're awake" Jacob said happily as he stood up and walked to Matt.

"Yeah" said Matt. "Jacob, I've come to thank you for giving me this" said Matt as he raised his hand to show the philosopher's stone. "I know it was meant to be given to you."

"It's alright" said Jacob. "You were a big help to me yesterday. Up until then I was scared, not knowing what would happen to me. But you showed up and despite knowing what was wrong with me still helped me. Not to mention when I fell you were willing to sacrifice your left arm to help me. This was the least I could do to show my thanks." Matt smiled and put his hand on his shoulder.

"That's what family is for Jacob. We look after each other" Matt said with a smile. "So tell me, what did they end up doing for you?" Jacob then raised his arms to show that they looked like normal arms. And just like Matt, there were gems on each of his wrist. Matt looked closely at them to see that the interior of the gem was actually a liquid.

"They put the elixir into a special gem, and now it acts like the philosopher's stone. When I remove the gems then my arms go back to normal so I can fight."

"Well that's good to hear" said Matt. "Actually, Jacob I need to go, there's something very important I have to take care of. I just dropped by to say thank you."

"It's not a problem Matt, I'll see you soon then" Jacob said as he said good bye to Matt who left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt made his way back home. He reentered his room to grab the elixir and began to walk in the hallway. Eventually he reached Sheril's room. He knocked on the door and he was told by a voice that he could come in. When he entered he saw Tricia lying on the bed with a few maids attending her. She had been very sick recently and because of that she hadn't left her room much at all.<p>

"What is it" one of the maids asked politely and friendly.

"I've come to give mother something" said Matt. As he walked over Tricia looked at Matt with a smile.

"What is it" asked the maid as she noticed the bottle in Matt's hands.

"Something I got from a recent mission" said Matt as he went by his mother's side. "Mother, I want you to drink this. I promise it will make you feel better. Matt handed the bottle to a maid who poured part of it into a glass and handed it to Tricia. Tricia smelled the drink first, it didn't exactly smell great, but she trusted Matt. She took a sip of it and placed the glass down.

"Mother, please drink it all" said Matt. "It won't help if you only drink a little." Tricia nodded and picked up the glass and drank it all. Almost immediately Tricia's pale face began getting its color back, energy and life seemed to reenter her body. She looked at Matt with surprise.

"Matt, what was that drink" asked Tricia as she put the glass down.

"That's something called the elixir of life mother" Matt said with a smile, he was happy to see that she was getting better. "It's supposed to help you. How do you feel?"

"Better than I have in a long time" Tricia smiled. Matt then suddenly hugged her which caught her off guard but she smiled and hugged her son back.

"I'm so glad" said Matt. "After all you've done for me I couldn't stand to see you sick. This was the very least I could do to help and say thank you for everything you've done." Matt then pulled away from Tricia but still had a smile on his face. He was happy once again.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 108 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as this one was fun to write. I decided that Tricia had deserved to get better so I gave her the elixir. Matt's relationship with her isn't really touched upon a lot but I will just say that Tricia (along with Road) really helped Matt when he was younger. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!<strong>

**Ok so here are my announcements. Betrayal of Madness' second chapter comes out today (you may or may not have noticed) and I will say that this one it very good :D I hope you all go and read it and review it :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	108. A Game of Chase

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt left his mother's room and decided to get something to eat. As he walked down he ran into Jynx who was apparently heading down to the dining hall.

"Jynx, what are you doing" Matt asked as he walked up to her. Jynx looked at Matt and smiled.

"I was looking for you master" said Jynx.

"What is it" asked Matt.

"I was wondering how your arm is feeling" said Jynx, a look of worry on her face as she looked at Matt's right arm. "When I asked yesterday they said it was in bad shape."

"Who said it was" asked Matt.

"The Skulls that brought you here" said Jynx, surprised to hear that Matt didn't know.

"Oh, I see" said Matt. "Well my arm feels fine. The stone in my wrist here is helping me out." Matt then showed Jynx the philosopher's stone which was in his wrist.

"It's a pretty stone" said Jynx as she looked at it.

"I suppose so" said Matt. "But I'm not too worried about its appearance. If it gets the job done then I'm happy."

"What does it do?"

"It heals my arm" said Matt, picking his words carefully so he didn't worry her. "My arm got hurt on my last mission but this stone here is helping my arm heal."  
>"Will it get removed" asked Jynx.<p>

"Probably not" said Matt and this brought a sad face to Jynx. "Don't worry Jynx, as long as I have this stone I will be fine, and so far I've hardly noticed it" Matt said with a smile.

"It doesn't bother you?"

"Not one bit" said Matt. "Now let's stop all this worrying and come with me as I get something to eat."

"Of course master" Jynx said with a bright smile and followed Matt to the dining hall.

* * *

><p>Matt ate his food with Jynx who was more than enjoying spending time with him. After that Matt parted from Jynx and went to his study in order to meditate, something he hadn't done for a long time. As Matt entered the room he saw Road sitting in the center of the room where Matt usually meditated.<p>

"Road what are you doing in here" asked Matt. "You know I don't like it when you come in here alone." Matt said this but he knew Road really didn't care. If there was someplace she wanted to go, she went and didn't care if she was allowed to or not.

"I'm bored" Road whined as Matt walked up to her. "Matt play with me."

"Do I have to" Matt said in a rather uninterested voice.

"Yes" said Road as she continued to whine.

"Road, I'm really not in the mood to play one of your games" said Matt.

"Oh come on please" Road begged.

"Fine, 1 game" said Matt, caving into her request.

"Yay" said ecstatically. "Catch me!"

"No Road, I don't want to get hurt right now" said Matt.

"But you said you would play a game with me. You never said what game" Road complained.

"Fine, fine, I'll try to catch you" said Matt. "And what are the stakes this time?"

"The usual" said Road.

"How about this, if you win you get your usual, if I win you can't ask to play a game for the rest of the month and you can't ask for candy." Road hesitated when Matt said this. She thought about it for a minute then a grin came over her face.

"Deal" said Road and she took off. Matt suddenly had a feeling that something bad was going to happen to him but he didn't want to lose so he took off after her.

* * *

><p>The game of chase lasted about an hour or so as Matt chased Road out of the abbey and into the village below. Matt tried to use the buildings to his advantage to try and box Road into a corner but she constantly evaded his attempts. Eventually, they made their way to the second level which had a small, grassy area. Matt leapt down from a building nearby and finally managed to grab Road. However, the moment he did this Road spun around and with all her might, kicked Matt between the legs. Matt froze before falling to the ground like a tree. Road immediately bursts out laughing at Matt as he laid there on the ground, barely able to breath. He felt like he was going to be sick as he curled up a little.<p>

"Damn…it Road" Matt managed to say. "What the hell was that for?" Matt continued to wince in pain. Road continued to laugh at Matt.

"Because I could" said Road. "I didn't want you to catch me so I improvised.

"Yeah, that's going down as against the rules" said Matt.

"Not this time though" Road grinned triumphantly at Matt who was still unmoving on the ground. "So, do you give up?" Matt groaned a little and simply nodded his head. "Good, then I expect some candy before the day is over." Road then tried to walk away but a stone hand rose from the ground and grabbed her.

"You're not going anywhere right now" said Matt as he managed to roll onto his back. "I'm a bit mad at you right now Road."

"Oh come on, you've had worse" said Road who was trying to free herself.

"Maybe, but that was just uncalled for" said Matt. As he said this Sheril walked down to them."

"Well, is everyone having fun" Sheril asked with a smile.

"Yes" said Road.

"No" said Matt. Sheril looked at both of them and got the general odea of what happened.

"Well at least one of you enjoyed themselves" said Sheril. "Anyways, Matt, Road, we will be attending a family dinner tonight."

"Can I get a rain check on that" said Matt. "I don't think I'm going to up for anything for a while."

"It's to welcome our newest Noah" said Sheril. "You don't have a choice in the matter."

"You mean Jacob? I already met him" said Matt. Sheril was a bit surprised to hear this.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do" said Sheril. "How do you know him already?"

"I was on a mission with him the other day" said Matt which surprised Sheril even more.

"A mission? Why were you on a mission with him?"

"To get him used to the war" said Matt as he finally sat up, still very sore.

"Was he responsible for what happened to your arm?"

"Yes, he was" said Matt. "But it was because of me that it happened. So don't go getting mad at him for it."

"I wouldn't even dream of it" Sheril lied, but Matt decided to ignore it.

"Well that's good. But because of that mission he should be fine now. Though I will admit he still needs some combat experience."

"What, you couldn't give him any" teased Road.

"No, I couldn't Road" said Matt. "I didn't want to throw him into a large fight right away so I had him stay back. But things went wrong."

"Well you're alright and that's all that matters" said Sheril as he helped Matt up. "Now go get ready, there's only a few hours left until the party and everyone is to wear formal attire."

"Fine" groaned Matt as he walked off with a little bit of a limp. Road accompanied him, laughing at him the entire time.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 109 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was fun to write. I am going to be doing some filler chapters as I figure out the next arc to the story so I'm giving you a head's up.<strong>

**Also, I should remind you that Betrayal of Madness' second chapter is out. So go and read it if you get the chance. I should also say that Betrayal of Madness won't be a daily update, like this story. New chapters will come out when they are finished to the time between chapters will vary. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	109. Dinner with the Clan

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt entered his room to prepare for the dinner that he had to attend. He didn't really want to attend it, he hadn't seen most of the Noah in a very long time and ever since the incident with Lulubell back at the old exorcist headquarters, things were a little tense. He flopped onto his bed; still sore from the cheap shot Road had given him not to long ago. Matt was actually a little surprised he had made it up the stairs into the abbey he was in so much pain, and Road laughing the entire time didn't help. After a minute, Lily crawled over to Matt and shook his shoulder.

"Daddy, are you alright" asked Lily.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm fine" said Matt. "I'm just a little sore and need some rest." Lily was a bit confused by Matt's behavior. Matt however noticed this and reacted before Lily could say anything. "I'm just resting before a big dinner I have to go to." The confused look on Lily's face faded a little.

"Dinner, with who" asked Lily.

"With the rest of the family" said Matt as he stood back up and walked over to his closet to look for his formal clothes, like Sheril said he had to wear. He pulled out a tuxedo and hund it up on a hanger next to the closet so he knew exactly what he was wearing. Matt looked at the clock in his room. There were still several hours before he was even supposed to arrive. Matt sighed; he just wanted to get it over with. So to pass the time, Matt laid back down on his bed and closed his eyes to rest for a short while.

The time passed and Matt finally decided to get up and get ready. He took a quick shower before putting on his tuxedo. He grabbed a pair of formal white gloves to go with the outfit. He thought about bringing his top hat along with him but decided there was no need for it. After saying good bye to Lily and Jynx, Matt left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt met up with the rest of his family and went through the ark gate which brought them to the large dining room. Despite being a bit early, Matt was surprised to see David and Jasdero messing around at the table, though they both looked bored out of their minds. They looked up with excitement when they saw the Kamelot family enter, as if they were something they could use to end their boredom.<p>

"Good evening, David, Jasdero" Tyki said politely as he took his seat across from them. Liza sat to his left while Matt took his seat to the right. Road sat to the right of Matt and Sheril after that.

"Yo, it's been a while" said David waving his golden gun around.

"Yeah, a long time! Heh" said Jasdero who also swung his gun around.

"So Matt, I heard rumors that you got yourself a girlfriend" Jasdero teased, Matt was not amused by this.

"What on earth are you talking about" asked Matt, already annoyed with the twins.

"Heard, you were seeing an akuma" David continued to tease.

"Yeah an akuma" agreed Jasdero.

"Now, I'm not one to judge usually but that's pretty messed up" said David. Suddenly a stone went hurling past his head. He looked at Matt angrily as Matt just sat there. "Hey what was that for" David yelled.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Matt grinned a little.

"You threw that rock at my head!"  
>"Oh I'm sorry. My hand must have slipped" said Matt. This annoyed David to no end. He raised his gun, along with Jasdero and shot purple bombs at Matt who didn't even flinch as they hit him.<p>

"HA! How do you like that" David yelled triumphantly. "That's what you get for throwing a rock at me!" However, he then began to notice that Matt was moving at all. Jasdero even took notice of it. "Hey, say something already!"

"Alright then" said Matt from behind them as he grabbed both David and Jasdero's head and smash them together, knocking them out. "You two are freaking annoying as hell." Matt then walked back to his seat where the stone clone he created crumbled away.

"Don't you think you went a little too far with that" said Tyki as he looked at Matt.

"Not at all, you were all thinking what I was saying" said Matt.

"Yes but still, you didn't have to knock them out."

"True, but it felt good" Matt grinned.

The rest of the Noah began to enter the dining hall after that until all the available seats were filled, excluding two, which belonged to the Earl and Jacob who wasn't there yet. After a few minutes the Earl finally entered the room with Jacob right behind him. The Earl took his seat and got everyone's attention.

"Good evening my children" the Earl said in a pleasant voice. "Thank you all for coming tonight on such short notice, however as you may know we have a new addition to our family." The Earl then gestured to Jacob. "This is the Jacob O'Connor, the Noah of Corruption. Please be kind to him." The Noah said their greetings from their seats. When Jacob scanned the group of Noah he finally saw Matt who smiled and nodded to him. "Jacob, why don't you take a seat, you'll be able to formally introduce yourselves to the others after we eat." Jacob nodded and took his seat at the table.

* * *

><p>Dinner came and went and afterwards Jacob spent his time introducing himself to the others. Matt watched on, happy to see him being well accepted into the family. After a while, Matt was finally able to talk to him.<p>

"So, what do you think of everyone" Matt asked with a smile.

"They all seem great, though a few seemed a bit, well, strange" said Jacob who was pointing at the twins who were once again messing around.

"Ah yes, well you get used to them" said Matt.

"Really?"

"No, not really" said Matt.

"Oh."

"But don't let that dishearten you, everyone here is trustworthy and reliable" said Matt. He would bring up Lulubell, but he realized that he shouldn't cause any worry for Jacob. After all, Matt was in a good mood and she had recently saved him, he didn't need to go causing trouble.

"Oh I see" said Jacob happily.

"Don't worry, things will turn out great" said Matt. "You've been on your first mission already and now all you need is your first kill." Jacob frowned when he heard this, he wasn't used to killing, nor did he like the thought of it. Of course Matt noticed this. "Look, the first kill is always the hardest. But you have to understand that the people we are fighting won't hesitate to try and kill you. You will need to learn how to fight back and accept the fact that by the end of this war you will have killed many people."

"How many have you killed?"

"More than I can count" said Matt. "Just take it one step at a time and don't let yourself die and I'm sure you will become a great Noah" Matt said with a smile.

"Thanks, that means a lot to me" Jacob said with a smile.

"Not a problem" said Matt as he pulled out a pocket watch to look at the time. "Well unfortunately, I must say good bye now. I have things to do. Like I said though, I'm sure you'll become a great Noah, just give it time." With that said he met up with the rest of his family and then left through an ark gate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 110 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. This one was interesting mainly because I brought back the other characters (sort of). I felt that it was appropriate for the situation. However, this marks the end of the philosopher's stone ark. I will be creating a new ark soon so the next few chapters may be filler. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**Ok, so I've updated the progress bar on my page regarding Betrayal of Madness. By going to my page you will be able to see how far I am on the newest chapter, and when I expect it to be released. So please go and take a look. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	110. The Next Day

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza.**

Once Matt returned home with everyone else, Matt went to bed immediately, he didn't really like having dinner with the entire clan, many of them, especially the twins, just gave him headaches now. But he had to be there to properly greet Jacob. If it wasn't for Jacob, Matt probably wouldn't have showed up and if he did he wouldn't have stayed as long.

Matt woke up the next day with a slight headache, but one that was easily ignored. Matt sat up in his bed and pat Lily on the head who was sleeping soundly next to him. Jynx of course was sleeping next to him as well but he must have broken free from her grip sometime during the night. Matt decided to get something to eat so he quickly got changed into some more casual clothes and left his room to the dining hall.

Once Matt arrived he saw Liza eating a large amount of food. Matt sat down across from her and gave a maid an order for what he wanted to eat. Liza took notice that Matt was rubbing his head.

"Headache" Liza asked as she stopped eating for a moment.

"A small one, probably a result from dinner last night."

"You really don't like those dinners do you" said Liza as she began eating again.

"Not particularly" said Matt.

"Why not" asked Liza. "You've always said that you care about your family more than anything."

"That statement wasn't meant for the entire clan" said Matt. "I care the most about the Kamelot family more than anything else. Don't get me wrong, I still care for the others, well most of them at least. But my priority is with my family."

"Wouldn't that cause a problem with the Earl? I mean it sounds like you're more loyal to your family than you are to him."

"Don't get me wrong, I will always be completely loyal to the Earl. Nothing will change that. However if given the choice I would in the end choose my family."

"That sounds a bit hypocritical don't you think" said Liza.

"Perhaps a little bit" said Matt as his food arrived and began to eat.

"I mean you say that you care about the other Noah yet you knocked the twins out last night, not to mention you hate Lulubell. And then you tell me that even though you are completely loyal to the Earl yet will still choose your family over him. It does seem to be a bit more than just a little hypocritical."

"That's harsh of you to say" Matt grinned a little. "You should know by now that the twins had it coming when they started to poke fun at Jynx, and in general for that matter."

"True" said Liza.

"And you should also realize by now that I will never forgive Lulubell for what she did to me. I mean she nearly got be killed!"  
>"I know but still, it's been so long. You should've have begun to forgive her a little for it."<p>

"Liza, Lulubell didn't even apologize after the fact. She said that we needed a distraction and she made one."

"I didn't know she said that" said Liza, shocked to hear those words.

"You were still on your long mission" said Matt. "That and the Earl really doesn't like us talking about it."

"I see" said Liza.

"And for what you said about my loyalty to the Earl. As long as he doesn't make me choose between him and my family, I will always follow him. But the moment he makes me choose, then things will change."

"I see" said Liza.

"Of course, that includes you Liza" Matt said with a smile.

"But, I'm not technically part of your family" said Liza.

"Yes you are and you know it" said Matt. "I don't need to explain to you why that is. Regardless, you are a treasured member of the family and I'm sure everyone else would agree with that as well."

"That means a lot to me" said Liza as she finished her food.

"It's not a problem" said Matt as he also finished his food and stood up and began to leave the room.

"Where are you heading" asked Liza as she stood up.

"To Sheril" said Matt. "I want to see if he has any missions for me."

"Wait for me" said Liza as she caught up to him. "I was planning on heading over there myself to ask for a mission."

* * *

><p>The two went to Sheril's office who was busy with work. When Matt and Liza he walked in and smiled.<p>

"Hello son, hello Liza" Sheril said with a smile. "What can I do for you?"

"Father we were wondering if you had any missions that the Earl wants to be completed" said Matt, Liza nodded in agreement.

"A mission? Well let me see here" said Sheril as he began to dig through some papers. Eventually he found a small piece of paper. "Ah, here it is. I do have one mission. Do you two want to share it?"

"I don't mind" said Matt.

"Neither do I" said Liza.

"Good, well you are to head a place called Chenonceau in France."

"There's been a lot of activily in France recently" said Matt.

"I realize that, the Earl is looking into the reason behind it" said Sheril. "Anyways, there should be innocence somewhere there. I would like you two to go and check it out."

"Doesn't sound like too much of a problem" said Matt.

"It shouldn't be. The rumors of innocence are very weak but it's something that caught our attention because it has caught the Black Order's attention. So be prepared to run into exorcists and finders once you arrive."

"We'll be ready for them" said Liza with a grin.  
>"I'm sure you will be" said Sheril. "That being said though, would you like to have a few akuma accompany you?"<p>

"I don't think it will be necessary" said Matt. "Akuma will only get in the way."

"Very well, I won't have any meet you there" said Sheril. "You two can head out whenever you like. Just do it within the next few hours so that the Black Order doesn't get there first."

"Sure thing" said Matt and he and Liza left the room. Matt spent an hour or so getting ready. There was no big rush but when he finally was ready he found himself waiting for Liza in front of the ark gate. After waiting for nearly 30 minutes Liza finally showed up.

"Sorry I took so long" said Liza.

"It's not a problem" said Matt. "Although, if you don't mind me asking, why did you take so long?"

"I was talking to Tyki and lost track of time" said Liza.

"Really? Where was Tyki? I thought he was on some mission seeing as he wasn't with you in the dining hall."

"He was in the library as usual" said Liza. "I dropped by to say good bye and we ended up talking for a long time."

"I see" said Matt, a grin on his face.

"I'm sorry, I should've been here a long time ago. I hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long."

"Only a half an hour" said Matt. "I took my time getting ready so if you hadn't gone to talk to Tyki then you might have been waiting for me."

"Well then I'm glad I got here when I did then" Liza joked. Matt laughed.

"Yes, well then, shall we get started on this mission?" Liza nodded.

"We should" said Liza and the two walked through the ark gate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 111 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was fun to write. I haven't said this in a while but I feel it would be important. Liza belongs to SpiderWraith and if you haven't gone and read her stories I highly recommend that you do.**

**So Betrayal of Madness has its 4****th**** chapter today! Please go and support my new story by reading and reviewing :D Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	111. Skirmish at Chenonceau

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt and Liza exited the ark gate and arrived outside a large gate that led to a long path. Matt walked up and looked past it at the long path. The path was surrounded by tall trees that formed a slight canopy above the path. At the end of this long path however he saw a white building. It was too far for Matt to really tell how big it was.

"That must be the place" said Matt as he turned back to Liza. "I think that's Chenonceau."

"Well it looks like we've got a bit of a walk ahead of us" said Liza. Matt laughed a little.

"Yeah, it certainly looks that way" said Matt as he opened the gate and the two walked through. "Hey have you ever noticed that these gates usually never bring us directly to where we need to go" said Matt as they walked down the path.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean it always seems like we have to end up walking wherever we go. Take here for example, the ark gate could've easily have opened all the way down there at the actual building, but instead we were placed at the main gate. This seems a bit inconvenient if you ask me."

"Oh don't be lazy" Liza teased.

"It's not a matter of being lazy" said Matt, getting a little defensive. "I just feel as if we're wasting time here. If we showed up at the place's front door we could be in and out in no time but now we have to walk a few minutes to get there."

"I don't really see the problem" said Liza. "If you ask me I like the walking."

"Of course you would" said Matt. The two walked for about a minute before either spoke.

"Hey Matt, do you see anything" asked Liza as she began to look around.

"Why" asked Matt.

"Well it's just all the trees and the fact that the land dips at the side of the road. It makes me a bit uneasy" said Liza.

"You think that we might be ambushed or something" asked Matt, taking note of his surroundings.

"Yeah I do. So I was wondering if you were using your eye to see if anyone was around."

"Hang on, let me take a look." Matt lifted up his eye patch and began to look around. Sure enough, further down the path, several green auras were lurking off the main path. "Liza, don't act any differently than we are now" said Matt in a calm voice.

"I see" said Liza. Matt didn't have to explain, Liza knew that Matt saw something. "So tell me Matt, how many missions have you gone on recently?" Matt looked at her with a confused look, she knew exactly how many he had been on. Then it clicked, he knew what she was asking. Matt looked around again.

"I would say in the recent months, about 12 or so" said Matt.

"That's it? I would've thought more" said Liza.

"Well give or take a few but yes 12." The two were now in the middle of where Matt saw all the auras. He gave a quick nod to Liza and the two both turned and attacked. Matt summoned several spikes along the side of the road while Liza summoned several orbs and began throwing them into the woods. Several of Matt's spikes hit their targets and the bodies fell to the ground. All of Liza's orbs missed but ended up hitting some trees, destroying their bases, causing them to fall and hit a few finders. The surviving exorcists and finders charged out of the woods and attacked Matt and Liza. Liza activated her innocence and began cutting away at them with her claws while Matt turned his arm into a sword to fight.

The fight only lasted a few minutes before only Matt and Liza were left standing. Matt had a few cuts on him but nothing serious. Liza had received a few injuries but had managed to heal them during the fight.

"That was surprisingly easy" said Matt as he tried to wipe some blood off his arms."

"Well I felt that it was a small number to have for an ambush" said Liza as she deactivated her innocence.

"That's true, but I think we should get moving" said Matt. "If these people were here then that means they Black Order is well on its way to finding the innocence." Liza nodded and the two began to head towards the chateau.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later and the two were standing in front of Chenonceau. It stood at the edge of a somewhat large river that appeared to have a strong current. The building extended across the river as well.<p>

"Liza, can you go and check out the small building there" asked Matt as he pointed to a circular stone building. "I'll go take a look inside the main building."

"Shouldn't we go together" asked Liza.

"That building is small, it shouldn't take you but a minute to go through it" said Matt.

"What makes you say that?"

"Because that would be one of the first places they would look" said Matt. "If no one is in there then you shouldn't have to worry about innocence being there." Liza sighed but then went into the building. Matt looked at the chateau and focused with his left eye. He could see a few sets of aura including 3 green auras. However, there were 4 other auras of different colors that caught his attentions. Matt figured they were bystanders. Matt walked up to the doors and pushed them open.

* * *

><p>Inside, almost as if they were waiting for them were a maid and a butler.<p>

"Good day sir" said the butler who seemed to be ignoring the fact that Matt was in his Noah form. "What can I do for you on this fine day?"

"I'm looking for something" said Matt. "If you tell me where the others here are looking I would be greatly appreciative."

"I'm sorry, but there's nobody else here" said the butler.

"Good sir, if you value your life in anyway just tell me where and what the people who showed up here are looking for" Matt warned.

"Sir, there is no one else here but" the butler was cut off when a stone spike pierced his skull. His body slumped to the ground and the maid screamed in horror. Matt, not wanting to put up with the screaming, shot the maid as well who fell to the floor dead next to the butler.

"Such an annoyance" said Matt as he rubbed his head and he began to look. Before he got started though Liza entered the house.

"Matt I checked it out. Doesn't look like the innocence was there" said Liza who then noticed the two dead servants on the ground. "Matt, was that really necessary?"

"They weren't of any use" said Matt. "Besides, they were purposely holding back information."

"So you killed them both. Don't you think that killing one may have intimidated the other into talking?"

"Perhaps but the maid was screaming so loud" said Matt. "I couldn't think of a better way at the time to shut her up."

"You're unbelievable sometimes, you know that right" said Liza in a somewhat disappointed tone, but she did have a grin on her face.

"I guess" Matt grinned. "Now let's search. There should be two members of the Black Order here. You check the basement and main floor. I'll take the second and third." Liza nodded and walked immediately into another room. Matt began to walk, taking a large step over the pool of blood that began to form from the freshly killed servants. Matt made his way to the stair case and began to walk up. He only took a few steps before a finder was rushing down the stairs and stopped in shock when he saw Matt. Matt blinked a few times, surprised to see the finder who immediately leapt over a small opening and into a small hallway at the side of the building.

Matt took off after him, landing in the small hallway and running after the finder. Matt ran through a room and then into a much larger room. The room crossed the entire river and it almost seemed like a closed off bridge. Matt however didn't have time to look because the moment he stepped into the room, he was hit in the face and knocked to the ground. Matt quickly rolled out of the way after he hit the ground as a heavy, blunt object smashed into the ground where he once laid. Matt stood up and stabbed the finder through the heart. Liza entered the room through the other side, but same end, of the hallway as Matt pushed the finder off his arm.

"Matt, you ok" asked Liza.

"Fine" said Matt. "But they have the innocence." They both looked down the long hallway to see a finder running outside. Liza and Matt gave chase to him. As they ran through Matt looked outside to see that upriver, several boats were held up. They all had cannons, similar to the ones used at Mont Saint Michel, mounted on them. He saw one fire.

"Liza watch out" yelled Matt as he grabbed Liza and pulled her back as the shot hit the side of the building, exploding right near where Liza was.

"Thanks Matt" Liza said, shocked at what just happened. Just then a second shot hit one of the supports below them.

"Are they out of their mind" said Matt. "They're going bring this place down. Liza we need to get out of this area now!" The two turned around and began to run back to the main building. However before they got far a round of shots blew away part of the building causing it to fall into the river. Matt looked at Liza as the supports under them gave way and the building broke apart, causing Matt and Liza, as well as chunks of the room they were in to crash into the water and be swept away by the strong current.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 112 coming soon!  
>Ok so first of I must apologize for not updating yesterday. I was really sick and couldn't work on the chapter. I feel bad about it and I promise that this won't happen again unless I say otherwise (which shouldn't be often at all).<strong>

**That being said, I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was fun to start writing again. This one wasn't really too difficult to write as I've been to Chenonceau before so I knew the layout pretty well. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**So I've begun working on the next chapter of Betrayal of Madness. Go to my page to see the progress and when I expect it to be ready. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	112. Running from the Order

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt was unconscious when he washed up along the bank of the river. He had a slight head wound and some of his clothes were torn. Liza walked up to him; she was in about the same shape as Matt, only she didn't hit her head on debris so she was still conscious. She quickly checked to see that he was still breathing and when she could hear him, she attempted to wake him up. Matt eventually opened his eyes to see Liza kneeling over him, making sure he was alright.

"Matt, are you ok" asked Liza when she saw Matt open his eyes.

"What" Matt asked groggily. "Yeah, I think I am."

"That's good" Liza said with a smile.

"Liza, where are we" Matt asked as he sat up and looked around. There was still some debris from Chenonceau floating down the river.

"Not very far from Chenonceau" said Liza. "There was a turn in the river and you washed up here."

"What about you" Matt asked.

"I rested of some floating debris but when I saw you hit land I swam to shore."

"Just how far did you say we were from Chenonceau" asked Matt as Liza helped him up.

"Not very" said Liza. "We were only drifting for a few minutes. But the current was strong so we did make it fairly far. Why do you ask?"

"Because I'm sure the Order is going to look for us to see if we're still alive. And if that's the case, I want to get as far away from the river as possible so those boats don't notice us."

"You've got a point" said Liza. "Let's get moving. Once we enter the woods it should be impossible for them to find us." Matt nodded and followed Liza. As they hurried into the woods though, the boats that carried the cannons showed up. The people on the boats saw Matt and Liza duck into the woods. They turned their cannons and began firing into the woods.

Matt and Liza began to sprint away once the first shot hit and knocked over a tree. As they ran, several trees had their trunks explode, causing them to fall in random directions. A few times both Matt and Liza nearly missed being hit by one of those trees. Eventually though, the cannon fire stopped and the two leaned up against some trees to catch their breath.

"Why hasn't an ark gate opened for us yet" Liza asked as she caught her breath.

"No idea" said Matt. "But we should keep moving, I think we might just be being followed." Matt looked back to see several faint green auras moving around.

"They're still going after us" Liza asked in disbelief.

"Well they sure are persistent, that much I've learned" said Matt as he began to walk. "Come on, it looks like they're taking their time. If we continue to move they shouldn't be able to catch up." Liza looked at where they just came from and then back to Matt. She then began to follow him.

"Why are they still trying to catch us" asked Liza as she caught up to Matt. "They have the innocence so why must they keep at us?"

"My guess is that they think we are weakened from the collapse of the building" said Matt. "Which is somewhat true."

"What do you mean" asked Liza, not understanding what Matt was talking about.

"My vision is a bit blurry. Not the best condition to be in when fighting. It must be a result of this damn head wound." Matt rubbed the wound and a lot of blood transferred to the back of his hand. "Although, I think it's going to heal soon enough."

"That's good to hear" said Liza as the two continued to walk.

* * *

><p>Eventually, after a few hours of walking, Liza and Matt finally found their way out of the woods and found themselves on the outskirts of a small town. Matt turned back to see if they were still being followed but saw nothing. The two were about to enter the town when an ark gate opened and Tyki walked out of it.<p>

"Tyki" Matt and Liza said at the same time.

"Well there you two are" said Tyki who sounded relieved to have found them. "We've been looking everywhere for you."

"How long have you been searching" asked Matt.

"For at least an hour, opening ark gates in different areas" said Tyki. "We began to suspect something was wrong when we didn't hear back so we went to check on you two. When we saw the current state of Chenonceau we began to search for you. What on earth happened there?"

"Oh you know, the Black Order brought some cannons and thought it was a good idea to shot at the place." Tyki was surprised to hear about the cannons.

"Seriously? Why would they bring cannons there" asked Tyki. "That place has people living in it. I would've never thought they would go and purposely destroy someone's house just to kill you two."

"Maybe they're getting desperate" said Matt as he thought about it.

"Maybe, but it's still really odd of them to do that" said Tyki as he thought about it as well.

"Well it makes sense" said Liza. "After all, the Order hasn't really been able to lower our numbers over the last few years and I'm sure they know we have only gotten stronger. I think they're just looking for a way to take out a few of us so they can have an easier time in the war."

"If you ask me that's because of their sheer numbers that they seem that way" said Matt. "If it wasn't for that I think we would've won a long time ago already."

"That's true but they have been able to create new weapons like those cannons and that artificial innocence the finders use."

"Oh that stuff is just an annoyance" said Liza.

"Hold on, we're getting off topic here" said Matt. "Tyki, when you said 'we', that implied others. Who was helping?"

"Sheril, Road and I were searching via the ark gates and Road's door" said Tyki. "We had akuma search along the river but we lost contact with them a while ago."

"That would make sense" said Matt. Tyki looked at Matt with a confused look.

"Yeah, the Order had brought some heavy weapons to the fight as well as a fair number of finders and exorcists" said Liza. Matt nodded in agreement.

"My guess is that the akuma got destroyed when they ran into them around where we washed up" said Matt.

"Where you washed up" Liza corrected "Remember, I swam.

"Details, details" said Matt.

"I see, what a waste of akuma then" said Tyki. "But enough about that, look at you two. You both look a mess and your clothes are still drenched. Let's get you two home now."

"Well Tyki, we're drenched because we fell in a river" Matt said sarcastically.  
>"Matt, was there any need for that comment" asked Liza.<p>

"Not really, no" Matt grinned. Tyki shook his head.

"Unbelievable" said Tyki. "Now if you don't mind we should get going. Because like I said, your clothes are still drenched and you look like a mess." Matt and Liza both nodded and followed Tyki through the gate.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 113 coming soon!****  
>I hope you enjoyed this chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. This chapter actually had a few ideas of what was going to happen with it but I decided to choose the one you read so I hope you enjoyed it. Please let me know what you think of it!<strong>

**Ok, so people have been asking me recently about my third story Birth of Madness and have been wondering about when the 4****th**** chapter will come out. Well I will say that I am working on getting at least the 4****th**** chapter out right now. I'm still having a lot of difficulty thinking about what would happen in the story. So please be patient, there will be more.**

**Also, I have updated my page with information about Betrayal of Madness, including the release date for the next chapter! Go there and check it out. Anyways that's it for today, until next time!**


	113. Returning Home

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Tyki led Matt and Liza through the ark gate and back to Mont Saint Michel. Once there everyone parted ways for a bit so they could clean up, especially for Matt and Liza. Matt was fairly weak at the time. Even though he acted normal around everyone else, once he entered the safety of his room his weakness began to show a bit. Lily and Jynx weren't around at the time, probably being distracted like always when something was wrong. Matt managed to get the drenched clothes off of him and into the shower. The warm water helped warm his body up which was shivering from the cold. After a long shower, Matt finally exited and got dressed into new clothes. As he finished putting on his shirt Majnun appeared.

"You really are something, hiding this weakness from your family" said Majnun as he looked at Matt.

"I don't need to hear that from you" said Matt as he sat down on his bed.

"Well I don't mean to judge but given the situation you were just in, I would say you are lucky to be alive."

"Shut up, what would you know about it" Matt said angrily, and then looked away from Majnun.

"Well it's certainly not my fault you can't swim" said Majnun, a grin forming on his face.

"I thought I told you to shut up" yelled Matt which only caused Majnun's grin to widen.

"Now, now" said Majnun. "There's no need to yell. I'm merely pointing out the truth here. After all water has always been your primary weakness, even before you obtained your awakened and ultimate forms. Why else could you not manipulate water, the only tangible element that you can't truly control?"

"It's not my fault I'm not a good swimmer" said Matt as he continued to look away. "And besides, I was unconscious. Even if I could swim I wouldn't have been able to do anything."

"Fair enough" Majnun admitted. "But still, perhaps you should consider learning to swim better?"

"I hardly think that would be necessary" said Matt. "I swim just fine. There's no need to get better."

"You look like a fish out of water when you swim" teased Majnun.

"No I don't!"  
>"Sure you do."<p>

"Majnun, I can swim well enough to get by. I don't plan on fighting in the middle of a lake anytime soon. The Earl knows that I can't manipulate water anyways so the odds that I would be placed on a mission that would require me to fight on water are virtually nonexistent."

"You mean besides this mission' Majnun said with a grin.

"I don't think the Earl realized that the Order was willing to destroy two thirds the house to stop me" said Matt as he finally looked at Majnun.

"Perhaps" said Majnun. "But then again I doubt we'll ever really find out."

"Say what you want but I'm done talking with you today" said Matt as he stood up and walked to his door.

"You're losing control again aren't you" asked Majnun as Matt was about to open the door. Matt hesitated.

"I don't know what you're talking about" said Matt.

"Perhaps that' the case" said Majnun. "Then again, you can't always see what I see and that includes your own mind."

"Explain yourself" said Matt who was annoyed with Majnun.

"I can see that you've begun to lose control again. You should be careful about how much you push yourself. Last time you got lucky and Tyki was able to deal with you quickly. But it will only get worse and worse each time you lose control. You'll become more dangerous to the point where the only way to save you is by killing you."

"And when do you think this may happen" Matt asked.

"Who knows" shrugged Majnun. "After all, neither I nor the original Noah of Madness ever fell victim to the curse. For all I know this next time could be the breaking point for you."

"Why tell me this now?"

"I have my reasons" said Majnun. "But one of the most important reasons is that I don't want you to die. I'm not ready to wait another 4,000 years before my next reincarnation."

"Whoever said anything about letting you reincarnate" Matt grinned. Majnun's grin disappeared when Matt said this.

"What are you saying" said Majnun.

"Nothing at the moment" said Matt who opened the door to his room and left.

* * *

><p>Matt made his way to the Library to see that Tyki and Liza were sitting in the library. Once they noticed Matt walk in they both looked up and smiled.<p>

"Good to see you've finally left your room" joked Liza.

"Yeah, sorry about that" said Matt as he rubbed the back of his head as he walked up and sat down on the couch across from them. "I was a bit distracted."

"With what" asked Tyki.

"Majnun" said Matt. "He's just being a pain in the ass as usual."

"What's he talking about this time" asked Liza.

"Basically my lack of swimming skill."

"Well he does bring up a good point there" said Tyki. "You really should probably learn to swim better."

"As long as can stay above water I'll be fine" said Matt a bit stubbornly. "There's no reason to fix something that isn't broken."

"But, hasn't your swimming been broken this entire time" said Liza, Tyki laughed which caused Matt to shot a glare to both of them.

"No, I'm just not as good at it compared to others" said Matt. "Look I don't go telling you to fix something that you can't do well so just drop the subject."

"Fair enough" said Tyki who laughed a little at Matt. Just then Lily and Jynx walked into the room. Lily seemed beaming with happiness for whatever reason which only increased when she saw Matt. She ran over to him and climbed onto his lap.

"Well somebody seems happy today" Matt said with a smile as he patted Lily on the head. Lily looked up at Matt and nodded.

"Yeah, Jynx played with me all day" Lily said happily. Matt smiled; she was completely unaware of what happened, as usual, which is exactly what Matt wanted. He didn't want Lily running off and doing something reckless. He then looked at Jynx who was walking over to them.

"Thank you Jynx" said Matt with a smile. "For playing with Lily all day. I'm sure you must be tired." Lily sat down next to Matt and leaned against him.

"I am a little Master" said Jynx. "But I'm not that tired at the moment." Jynx let out a large yawn which made Matt laugh.

"Not tired" asked Matt with a grin on his face. "From the looks of it you are very tired."

"I guess so" said Jynx, a little embarrassed at her own yawn.

"Get some rest" said Matt. Jynx nodded and almost instantly fell asleep. Matt looked at Jynx, he wanted her to get up and at least lie down on the couch instead of leaning on him. He let out a sigh which caused Liza to laugh.

"Well what do you expect? You did tell her to sleep" said Liza with a smile on her face.

"I know but I expected her to at least move" said Matt as he looked at Jynx.

"Matt, when has she ever given up an opportunity to cling to you" asked Tyki.

"Never, I suppose" Matt admitted as he looked back at Tyki and Liza. "By the way, where is everyone else?"

"Sheril and Road are probably still searching for you two" said Tyki. "But don't worry, when you two were getting cleaned up, I sent out some akuma to notify them. They should be home soon enough."

"That's good to hear" said Matt as he leaned back against the couch, waiting for everyone to come home.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 114 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was fun to write. Sorry that much didn't happen in this one but I'm still working out the details for the next arc, which should be a good one. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!<br>**

**So Betrayal of Madness' 4****th**** chapter is almost ready. It should be up either today or tomorrow, depending on how things go. Go to my page to see when I think it will be ready. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	114. Foreboding Feeling

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Three days passed since Matt and Liza returned from their mission. Everyone was relieved to see that they were alright. When the mission report was given to the Earl he was relieved to see that everyone returned safely but was a little upset that they weren't able to recover and destroy the innocence there. But he wasn't mad at Liza or Matt for this because of the unforeseen events; he was just upset that he didn't send them out sooner.

Matt was hanging around with Road who had just received a bag of candy. Road was surprised to receive is because for once she didn't ask for any.

"Matt, thanks for the candy" Road said happily as she opened the bag and began to eat from it. The two were in Matt's meditation room at the time.

"You're welcome" Matt said with a smile. "I figured you deserved it seeing how you haven't broken into the vault for a while." Matt was however lost in thought which caught Road's attention.

"Hey Matt, you alright" asked Road. "You seem a bit concerned about something."

"It's just something Majnun said after Liza and I returned from our mission" said Matt.

"Oh? I thought you usually don't listen to him" said Road.

"Well usually he's just plain annoying but he said something this time that caught my attention."

"And what was it he said?"

"He said I'm losing control again" Matt said, the smile gone from his face.

"Really" Road asked, shocked. "But I thought you were under control."

"Well I feel fine" said Matt. "I mean I haven't felt any different since I last lost control."

"So Majnun must be pulling your leg here" said Road. "He loves messing with you."

"He's never joked around with something like this" said Matt. "I think he's telling the truth."

"But you said yourself that you're fine" said Road, now a bit worried for Matt.

"True, but if anyone would know, it would be him. After all he lives within my mind. I will amit I am a bit afraid of losing control again" said Matt, the sound of fear in his voice. Road could tell that Matt was afraid of losing control again. "I'm afraid of hurting you and the others. I would rather die than to do that."

"Matt, please stop talking like this" said Road. "I don't like it when you talk about these kinds of things." Matt looked up at Road.

"Right, I'm sorry Road" said Matt who forced a smile. "I didn't mean to worry you."

"That's fine" said Road. "I just don't like it when you go and talk like that."

"But Road, I don't remember ever talking like that before" said Matt.

"Well I don't like hearing it anyways" said Road, a bit annoyed at Matt. "Matt, you are going to be fine. If Majnun says otherwise then don't listen to him!"

"You're right, I shouldn't listen to him" said Matt as he stood up. "After all, he's really worthless and does nothing to help me."

"Hey…" Majnun's voice echoed through Matt's head which caused him to grin. Road looked at Matt with a confused look.

"What's with the grin?"

"Oh nothing" said Matt. "Majnun didn't appreciate my little comment." Road laughed a little.

"Come on, let's go see if anyone is in the library." Road helped Matt up and the two left the room and began to walk to the library.

* * *

><p>When they walked in they found Tyki, along with Liza sitting on a couch. Both of them were reading books. Running through the room though was Lily, who was being chased by Jynx. When Matt walked in, it caught Lily's immediate attention and she ran over to him, laughing the entire time. She jumped up and hugged Matt, which caught him off guard a little because he wasn't looking at Lily when it happened. This caused everyone to laugh a little.<p>

"Hey Lily, how are things going for you" Matt said with a smile as he held her up.

"Good" Lily said happily. "Jynx and I were playing tag." Matt looked up to see Jynx approach him.

"And were you winning" Matt asked Lily who nodded her head. "That's good to hear." Matt then turned to Jynx. "Jynx, thank you for playing with Lily again today, it's a big help." Jynx smiled at Matt.

"It's not a problem Master" said Jynx. "I enjoy playing with her."

"Well that's good. It's good to see you two enjoying yourselves so much around the abbey. I take it you two are behaving and not causing trouble unlike Road here." Matt grinned as he looked at Road who pouted and stuck her tongue out at Matt.

"No fair, you cause trouble too" said Road.

"I do no such thing" said Matt who was lying to himself. This caused Tyki to laugh a little.

"You both cause a lot of trouble" said Tyki.

"Hey" said Matt and Road, a bit upset with what Tyki said, at the same time.

"Well it's true, you two always cause so much damage."

"Well it's not our fault things break so easily" said Matt.

"Says the one who does most of the breaking" said Liza.

"Oh come on, don't side with Tyki" Matt whined which caused Liza to chuckle.

"Sorry, but I always will."

"Gee thanks" Matt said sarcastically. "But it's not my fault, Road is hard to catch without using my abilities."

"That's an excuse Matt" said Tyki. "You still cause the most destruction." Matt pouted a little then he heard laughter coming from Lily. He looked down to see her laughing.

"What, you're siding with them as well" Matt asked in disbelief. Lily nodded again. "Oh come on, even my akuma think I'm too destructive around the abbey." This caused Lily to laugh even more. Matt couldn't help but look at Lily and laugh as well. "Well if that's the case, then I think I'll just put you down and spend my time with Jynx." Matt put Lily down and walked over to Jynx. Lily immediately stopped laughing and ran over to Matt.

"No" Lily said desperately as she grabbed Matt's sleeve.

"Oh? You done laughing now" said Matt, playing around with Lily. "I think Jynx deserves at least some of my attention." Lily shook her head.

"No" Lily said simply. Matt smiled.

"You really are a greedy little girl" said Matt as he picked up Lily. "Sorry about that Jynx."

"It's alright Master" said Jynx with a smile. Matt smiled back and as he did Sheril walked into the room.

"Well it looks like everyone is enjoying themselves" said Sheril.

"Father, are you done with work today" asked Matt.

"Yes, it's fairly late so I thought I'd call it quits today" Sheril said with a smile as he took a seat in an armchair.

"That's good to hear" said Matt as he handed Lily over to Sheril, much to her protest. Matt sat down on the couch and Jynx joined him. She leaned against Matt, who put an arm around her, and closed her eyes, enjoying the attention she was getting now.

"Oh by the way Matt, tomorrow I have a mission to give you" said Sheril as he held Lily.

"Well that killed the mood a little" said Matt. "Couldn't that have waited until tomorrow sometime?"

"Normally yes but you will be leaving earlier than you wake up most days so I figured I'd warn you."

"And here I thought I was going to sleep in tomorrow" Matt complained.

"If you want I can send Road to wake you up" said Sheril.

"No, that won't be necessary" said Matt, a bit afraid of the thought of Road waking him up.

"Well if you sleep in then I will send her" said Sheril. Road gave Matt an evil smile. She was now hoping Matt would sleep in. Everyone except Matt laughed about this and then everyone spent the rest of the evening enjoying their time together.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 115 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. I need to apologize once again for such a delayed chapter. Unfortunately I have been really sick the last week so I haven't been able to focus well on my writing. I am still sick though so for a while, don't expect daily updates. I simply don't have the stamina and focus to do that. I hope you understand. I will let you know when I go back to normal schedule.**

**Also, this was an announcement that I wanted to make in Betrayal of Madness but never did (I will be making this announcement again in the next Betrayal chapter just to remind). I have put up a poll regarding a Matt and Lenalee pairing. Please go to my profile and vote. Remember, this is for Betrayal of Madness and not Shadow of Madness. Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time!**


	115. The Day of the Mission

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's excluding Liza**

Matt went to bed after spending several hours with his family. After that time he decided to go to bed. As Matt got ready to go to bed he thought about what mission he was going to be given tomorrow. Either way he wasn't looking forward to it. He didn't want to go on a mission, especially after Majnun's warning about him losing control again. Matt then decided to forget about it for the time being and worry about it tomorrow. He climbed into bed and Lily and Jynx followed after him. After a few minutes of staring at the ceiling, Matt fell asleep.

It was early in the morning and Matt was fast asleep. The door to his room silently opened and Road peered into the room. When she saw that Matt was still asleep an evil grin came over her face. She tip-toed across the room and up to Matt's bed. Both Lily and Jynx were sleeping to Matt's left side so she decided to crawl onto the bed. Once on she stood up. She waited a moment before jumping up and landing, feet first, with as much might as she could onto Matt's stomach.

"Time to wake up" yelled Road as she landed on Matt. Matt's eyes, as well as Lily and Jynx's eyes shot open, startled by the sudden noise. Matt had the wind knocked out of him bit still managed to speak.

"What the hell" Matt managed to say as he tried to collect his breath. "What was that for?"

"Father told me to wake you up, so I did" said Road as she jumped up again and landed once again on Matt. This time though she ended up sitting down on him.

"So you jumped on me?"

"Well I thought it was an effective way to wake you up" Road said innocently.

"Effective, yeah you could say that" Matt said a bit sarcastically. "Nearly killed me is more like it."

"Oh you're fine, quit whining" said Road who still sat on Matt.

"Well I would be better if you hadn't jumped on me with your freaking shoes on!"

"I didn't want to take them off" Road said innocently.

"I don't care" said Matt, not buying into Road's innocent act. "Why must you always try to hurt me" Matt asked with a sigh.

"Because it's fun" Road said gleefully. Matt sighed, that wasn't the answer he was looking for, but the one he figured would be said.

"Yeah fun for you" Matt pointed out.

"Isn't that all that matters" Road said with a grin.

"Not really" said Matt and Road pouted.

"You're no fun" said Road as she pouted.

"Oh be quiet" said Matt. "We play games almost every day we're home. I don't care if I get hurt then; after all it's a game. I just don't like it when you do stuff like this."

"Fine, I'll try to avoid doing that" said Road, but she didn't sound very convincing. However, Matt knew he wasn't going to get anything better from her. "Now hurry up and get ready" said Road as she got off Matt and his bed. "We have to go see Father so we can get our mission."

"Yeah, yeah I know" said Matt as he rubbed his stomach as he sat up. He then left his bed and went to get ready. After a few minutes, Matt left his bathroom to see Road was still there. Luckily, he had changed in the bathroom after his shower.

"Road what are you still doing here" asked Matt as he walked up to his closet and opened it.

"Making sure that you are getting ready and not going back to bed" said Road as she sat on his bed.

"Road I'm not that lazy" said Matt as he pulled out his usual long black coat and put it on. "I don't go back to bed after waking up in the morning."

"I know, but there's a first time for everything" said Road as she got off his bed when she saw that he was ready. Matt told Lily and Jynx to go back to sleep as it was still early in the morning and Road and Matt left the room.

* * *

><p>The two arrived in Sheril's office. As they walked in they saw that it wasn't a big mess meaning he hadn't started to work today. Sheril immediately noticed them when they walked in.<p>

"Good morning" said Sheril with a smile. "I'm actually a bit surprised to see you here right now." Matt gave Sheril a confused look.

"What do you mean" asked Matt.

"Well I wasn't expecting you for another hour or so" said Sheril. Matt shot a glare at Road.

"Road!" Road simply smiled.

"Yes" Road asked innocently.

"You didn't mention when you woke me up that there was so much time left."

"Well I didn't want you to sleep in so I woke you up early." Matt hit Road on the top of her head. "Hey! What was that for" Road whined as she rubbed her head.

"For waking me up early" said Matt as he looked back to Sheril.

"Well then" said Sheril who was not fazed by what just happened, as it happened all the time. "I suppose I can give you your mission now."

"Alright, what is it" asked Matt, who had gotten over Road waking him up. He knew nothing good would come from arguing with her.

"Well you will be retrieving innocence once again" said Sheril. "I will admit though that this mission may turn out to be a long one."

"What do you mean" asked Matt.

"Well, the piece of innocence is located in Beijing, China" said Sheril.

"Alright then, where in Beijing" asked Matt.

"That's the thing, we don't know where it is" said Sheril a bit embarrassed by the lack of information. "All we know is that there is a piece of innocence somewhere in the city."

"Seriously" Matt asked in disbelief.

"Seriously" said Sheril.

"Alright, so you don't know what the innocence looks like there, or where it is. All you know is that it's somewhere in Beijing."

"I realize that's not much to go on" said Sheril.

"That's nothing to go on" Matt shot back.

"Look, the only positive thing about this is that the Black Order knows as much as we do" said Sheril. "So they will have to search just as hard for it."

"Father, you do realize that to thoroughly search the city, it could take days to find it."

"I realize that. You'll just have to stay at a hotel during the time."

"Couldn't you have Tyki, maybe Liza join us as well" asked Matt. "It would probably go quicker."

"Unfortunately, they are busy with their own missions which I will be assigning to them today" said Sheril. Matt sighed in defeat.

"Fine, we'll get going then" said Matt as he turned around and began to walk out of the room with Road.

"Good luck you two" Sheril said happily.

"Yeah, yeah" said Matt as he and Road left the room.

* * *

><p>Road and Matt reached the ark gate in the main courtyard of the abbey.<p>

"Yay" Road said happily. "It's been a while since we've had a multi-day mission together."

"That's true" said Matt. "Try not to torture me during the trip Road. I know Tyki won't be there to monitor you."

"I promise to behave" Road said in an innocent voice.

"Why do I find that hard to believe" said Matt.

"Meanie" said Road. "You don't believe me?"

"Hard to say" said Matt. "I never know just how you will behave on a mission."

"I said I would behave" said Road, continuing with her innocent voice. "You don't have to worry about a thing."

"No, you see it's that voice" said Matt. "Every time you use that voice I can't trust a word you say." Road's eyes became teary.

"You don't trust me" said Road who looked like she was on the brink of tears, which, of course, were fake.

"Not at all" said Matt, ignoring the fake teary eyes. "I just trust that tone in your voice." Road pouted when she say that the look she gave wasn't affecting him.

"Well it's true though."

"I know" Matt said with a smile. "I'm just messing with you." Matt then walked through the ark gate.  
>"Hey!" Road said in disbelief as she chased after him through the gate.<p>

Matt and Road exited the ark gate to find themselves in the middle of Beijing. The two looked around for a moment before beginning their long search for the innocence.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 116 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter as this one was a lot of fun to write! I'm sorry for not updating yesterday, but as I said at the end of chapter 115, I am sick and wouldn't be updating daily until I get better. Believe me though, I don't like not updating daily as I do enjoy writing the story, it's just that I'm a bit weak, I guess you could say, to write every day at the moment. Don't worry though, I will be going back to daily updates as soon as I can!<strong>

**Ok so a quick Betrayal update (for those who read). I haven't been able to work on the next chapter recently so the next chapter is still a little ways away from being ready to publish. I'm sorry about that but I am working on it though so I'm thinking that it will come out sometime mid next week. Also, if you haven't already, check out the poll on my page that is in regards to Betrayal of Madness. Anyways, that's it for today. Until next time!**


	116. The Search for Innocence

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt and Road spent hours wandering the streets of Beijing, China looking for any signs of innocence. However, despite walking for ages and seeing many different areas of the massive and heavily populated city, they were no closer to finding the innocence than when they first arrived. Eventually the two were forced to stop and rest for a little bit and get something to eat. The chose to eat in a small restaurant that they had managed to find. After the two placed their orders they began to think about their mission.

"This is going nowhere" Road complained as she sat at the table they were at. "I'm so bored."

"I know" said Matt who was equally as annoyed and bored as Road was, but didn't show it as much. "Even though this is such a large city I would've thought we would get at least some sort of clue as to the location of the innocence."

"It's no fair at all" Road continued to complain and whine. "I wanted to play with some exorcists today."

"There's still time" said Matt. "We aren't done yet."

"But this place is so big. How can we even hope to find it? We don't even have any akuma to help us."

"I know" said Matt in agreement. "If we had akuma with us this would go by much more quickly. But right now we don't have any so we need to think about this."

"What do you mean" asked Road, ending her whining to hear what Matt had to say.

"Well, we've only wandered the city and that is obviously getting us nowhere. What we need to do is think about where innocence would be located."

"But innocence could be located anywhere" said Road. "Remember, I told you once that some weird lady had innocence in a clock."

"Yes I remember" said Matt. "But still, recently it seems like innocence is turning up in more notable areas."

"True, but still, there's no guarantee that those places would have them."

"Well then there's two ways of going about this. Either we begin searching more notable locations or we search for members of the Black Order and have them lead us to the innocence."

"You could use your eye to find them so it should be easier for the second option" said Road.

"Yes, it would be. But seeing as this is a city, if I wanted any chance of finding someone from the Order, I would have to get to a high enough location and if we do that we would become much more suspicious."

"Since when have you ever cared about being inconspicuous?"

"Since I don't want to give the Order time to prepare" said Matt. "It would make our job that much easier if they don't know we're coming." As Matt said this their food arrived and they began to eat. "I must admit" said Matt as he went to take a bit of his food. "I hope that the exorcists there prove to be interesting."

"You mean you want to see Lenalee there" Road asked with a grin. Matt nearly choked on his food when he heard this.

"W-What are you talking about" Matt asked as he regained composure after nearly choking.

"I'm saying you always seem to enjoy your fights with her" said Road with a grin; obviously she got the reaction she wanted from him.

"She's certainly more interesting to fight" said Matt as he completely regained his composure. "I don't see why that makes it such a big deal. You enjoy fun fights as well."

"True," said Road.

"And besides, as long as the person fighting is strong I really don't care who I fight."

Matt then continued eating his food.

* * *

><p>After Road and Matt finished eating the two began their search again. Going with Matt's idea, they decided to search at notable locations first, and along the way they would look for members of the Order. The first place they decided to look was an obvious one, the Forbidden City. As they approached the city Matt lifted his eye patch to see if he could see anyone near or inside the walled city.<p>

"Well I don't believe it" said Matt as he looked at the city.

"What" asked Road.

"The place seems to be occupied by the Order. It looks like this is the place the innocence is located."

"Seriously" asked Road. "We should've came here first then."

"True, but I didn't think about it until a little while ago" said Matt. "And besides, it looks like they don't have it yet." The two walked up to the northern most gate and saw that it wasn't guarded. "Well this is convenient" said Matt as they walked to the gate and opened it.

"Why isn't it guarded" asked Road.

"Probably because they have people inside the gate said Matt as he opened the gate and walked in. "That and we're using the back entrance to the place." The two entered the city and scanned the houses. As they did, Matt noticed a pair of auras coming from further up. "Careful, there are a few up ahead."

"Shouldn't be a problem" said Road as they continued to walk. As they did they finally saw who the auras belonged to. Leaning against the wall was Kanda and standing across from him was Lavi. When they noticed Matt and Road approaching them they immediately activated their innocence.

"I'm not going to let you pass Noah" Kanda said in an angry voice.

"Kanda, it's so good to see you again" Matt said in a sarcastic voice, masking the anger. "I still haven't properly repaid you for killing Wisely." In that instant, Matt bolted at Kanda and turned his arm into a sword. Matt took a swing but Kanda managed to block the attack with mugen. As they pushed against each other's weapon, Lavi swung his hammer and hit Matt in the side sending him flying further down the path and crashing into the wall across from where Kanda was, further down. Matt stood back up and went for another attack, but as he did he saw Lavi say something and hit his hammer to the ground. As he did this a flaming serpent rose from his hammer and lunged at Matt. Matt defended himself with his left arm and managed to block the attack. However, the attack was still going and therefore Matt was being pushed back until he couldn't hold back the attack any longer. Matt was sent flying into a wall further down the path, causing the area where Matt his to crumble.

As Matt stood up, he saw Lavi send the serpent to attack again. As it did Matt looked to his left then back at the serpent. He didn't move an inch and just as the fire serpent was about to strike Matt, a large stone serpent burst from the ground to Matt's left and as it moved it bit the fire serpent into two. The head of the fire serpent vanished before it could touch Matt. In the same motion the serpent dove back into the ground. Lavi was shocked to see what had just happened but didn't have too much time to think before the serpent burst from the ground again, this time right on top of them. The stone serpent dove at Lavi but had its head cut off by Kanda.

At the same time though, Matt was charging at them, his arm once again a sword. He leapt on top of the destroyed serpent and lunged at Kanda again. This time though Matt managed to cut his arm before he was kicked back to where Road was. Matt stood back up and looked at Road.

"Road, you go on ahead and search for the innocence" said Matt as he caught his breath a little. "I'll take these two." Road nodded.

"Be safe" said Road as she took off in a different direction. Lavi and Kanda both tried to stop her but several stone spikes got in the way of that. The two looked back at Matt, his face serious.

"Your opponent is me" said Matt. Kanda and Lavi looked at each other for a moment before attacking Matt.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 117 coming soon!  
>I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. So an update, I've gotten better however, I think I'm going to continue updating this story every other day. I'm sorry about this but right now I feel more comfortable giving myself an extra day to think about the next chapter before writing it. That being said, the release schedule is never permanent so I may update multiple days in a row if the chapters come easy for me. I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience to you but rest assured this is for the greater good of the story. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.<strong>

**So a quick update on the process of the next chapter of Betrayal of Madness. I've begun writing the next one but I'm still a ways away from being ready to publish. I will say though that it will be ready sometime this week. Go to my page to see the progress of the story, and vote on the poll there that is in regards to that story. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time! **


	117. Battle of the Forbidden City part 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Road broke off from Matt, leaving him to deal with Kanda and Lavi, in order to search for the innocence. Unfortunately, the Forbidden City was far larger than she had really anticipated and she quickly found herself running around in circles. Eventually though, Road was able to run into some finders that were with two exorcists. Road gave a wicked grin.

"Oh boy, just my luck" Road said happily, though with an evil tone. "A bunch of finders and exorcists to play with."

"Just try and stop us Noah" one of the exorcists said, a bit overconfident.

"Oh, you have spirit" Road said with a happy tone. "I look forward to breaking it." With that Road created a separate dimension for all of them to go into. Before she entered, Road looked back, hoping that Matt would be alright.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, back where Road left Matt, Matt was in a fierce fight with Kanda and Lavi. Matt dodged and weaved the attacks that came at him with relative ease, but he knew that they weren't attacking him at full strength yet either. As they fought, Kanda and Lavi attacked at the same exact time. Lavi attacked from Matt's left side, while Kanda attacked from Matt's right. Matt blocked Kanda's attack with his sword arm and blocked Lavi's hammer with his left hand. Matt was struggling to hold them both back.<p>

"Well this isn't fair at all" Matt said with a slight sarcastic grin as he held the two back. "Two against one, how will I ever defeat you two when it's just me."

"Shut up Noah" Kanda. "Soon you will join the other Noah's I've killed. It's a shame that stupid snake of yours turned out to be trash."

"Ouch, that hurts Kanda" Matt said sarcastically. "But I wouldn't count that snake out just yet."

"What are you talking about" Lavi asked.

"Don't tell me Bookman Junior hasn't realized yet" Matt said with a grin. Lavi turned to look where the ruined remains of the stone serpent was to see that it was missing. His eye widened when suddenly the stone serpent erupted from the ground beneath them. Kanda and Lavi both jumped out of the way as the head of the serpent rose into the air with Matt on top of it. Matt looked at Kanda and leapt off the serpent to attack him. Matt swung as he landed on the ground. Kanda jumped back but was forced to quickly dive out from where he stood as several spikes shot out of the ground where he stood. He rolled and then charged at Matt. He took a swing at Matt who grabbed the sword with his left hand. Matt went to stab Kanda with his right hand but he managed to dodge the attack. Kanda then countered by punching Matt in the face, causing Matt to release Mugen and stagger back a few steps.

"Such a fool" said Kanda. Using his first illusion, Kanda swung his sword and several serpent-like insects flew out at Matt. Matt, who was still somewhat dazed from the attack rose a stone pillar to block the attack. The insects hit the wall and exploding causing Matt to fly back and hit the stone serpent. The serpent looked down then attacked Kanda who dodged out of the way as the serpent slammed and disappeared into the ground. As this happened Matt used the opportunity to attack Kanda. Matt thrusts his arm at Kanda who managed to dodge but still got a slight cut on his arm. Matt saw how his arm healed quickly.

"Damn, I had forgotten you could heal quickly" Matt complained as he swung again at Kanda who dodged. As he did though, the stone serpent shot out of the ground, mouth open, looking to crush Kanda between its jaws. Kanda barely managed to dodge the

attack. He then shot a glare at Lavi.

"Will you quit standing there and help me" Kanda yelled to Lavi. Lavi nodded and used his combo stamp to create a flame serpent to attack the stone serpent. Lavi began to focus on that fight as Kanda handled Matt.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere, Road had just finished up with the exorcists and finders that she had trapped in her dream world.<p>

"Well that was fun" Road said happily as she looked back and saw Matt's stone serpent and Lavi's flame serpent fighting. "I need to hurry I think" Road said to herself. "Now I just need to ask one of the finders if they know where the innocence is." Road looked over and saw the bodies lying on the ground, dead. "Oh that's right, I killed them." Road the shrugged and ran off looking for the innocence.

* * *

><p>Matt and Kanda were fighting fiercely through the streets of the Forbidden City. As Kanda kicked Matt into a wall he looked up to the fighting serpents. The two serpents began to entwine as the rose their bodies into the sky until finally they both bite down on the other's head. Both of the heads were destroyed. The fire serpent vanished while the stone serpent fell back and crashed into the buildings below it. Kanda then heard Matt laugh a little.<p>

"It's about time that thing was destroyed" said Matt. Kanda looked at Matt but when he did he saw that Matt wasn't there. Suddenly he felt someone grab the back of his head and slammed his face into the ground. He was then lifted and thrown into a wall, breaking it. Kanda opened his eyes as he laid in the rubble. He saw that Matt was in his ultimate form. Kanda went to stand up but a Madness Aura hand grabbed him and slammed him into the ground a few times before throwing him into another wall, once again destroying it.

Once Kanda recovered he activated his fourth illusion style and charged at Matt. This led to a series of attacks which were being dodged by both Matt and Kanda. During the fight though, Matt failed to realize Lavi who managed to land a direct blow on Matt who was sent flying into the air and crashing into a building not far from where they were. When the two reached the building they saw Matt walking out.

"That was a close one" Matt said with a grin. "If you had hit me on my right side I probably wouldn't be able to walk or use my arm right now."

"Next time I won't forget that" said Lavi. Matt's grin only widened when Lavi said this.

"Assuming you get another chance" said Matt and he raised his right hand and an orb began to form. The dark orb continued to grow until it suddenly compressed into a smaller ball the size of Matt's hand. Matt shot the orb at Kanda and Lavi. The two dived out of the way but the explosion that ensued sent them flying anyways. "Damn, I missed" said Matt as he walked up to the crater. However, Matt was only able to look at the crater for a second before he saw a fire serpent rushing towards him. Matt aimed his hand at the serpent and created another orb. He shot the orb and hit the serpent causing a massive explosion in the air. At the same time however Kanda managed to get behind Matt and went to stab Matt. Matt, barely noticed the attack and went to dodge. However, Kanda was able to stab Matt's right shoulder with Mugen. Matt kicked Kanda in the gut which knocked Kanda back, pulling the sword out of Matt. Matt held the newly formed wound, it hurt much more than it should have. As he was distracted by this Lavi managed to get a hit on Matt which sent him crashing into a pile of rubble. Lavi immediately went in for a follow up attack but several Madness Aura chains wrapped around him, immobilizing Lavi.

Kanda, who was all to familiar with these chains, quickly broke them with his sword, freeing Lavi. However at the same time, Matt had shot another orb at them. Because of Matt's new injury, the shot hit the ground in front of them, but it was close enough to send them flying into another pile of rubble.

"I need to end this now" Matt said to himself as he walked up to Kanda and Lavi who were both now being held down by chains. It was at this exact moment when an ark gate opened up next to him.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 118 coming soon!Ok first off, let me apologize for the delay in the release of this chapter. If you hadn't read on my page, last week my hard drive on my computer died and I was forced to get a new one so I could continue working on my chapters. However, the new hard drive I got didn't work and so I was forced to wait an extra day in order to start recovering from this. Also, I'm dealing with a new version of Microsoft Word (an older version which I've never used) so I'm still trying to get used to it. So if the formatting seems a bit…off, please be patient, I'm working on getting used to it!**

**So now you know why there wasn't a chapter. And I must say that this one was really difficult to write as I lost all my ideas and notes for this chapter (and arc for that matter) because they were all on my old hard drive…Anyways, despite that, the chapter was a lot of fun to write and I'm glad to be back and writing again! Please let me know what you thought of the chapter!**

**So yeah, I'm about finished with my Betrayal of Madness poll on my page so if you haven't voted yet (and you read Betrayal of Madness) please go and vote. My next poll will deal with an upcoming Shadow arc that I had planned, so once again I will be looking to you all to tell me what you would like to see! (I will let you know in an upcoming chapter when that will be). Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	118. Battle of the Forbidden City part 2

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt stared at the newly opened ark gate, curious to what it was doing. Even Lavi and Kanda stared at the gate for a moment. However, the moment passed and nothing came out from it. Kanda grew impatient and realized Matt wasn't fully paying attention to them so he decided to take advantage of the moment. He went in for an attack. However, as he swung his sword at Matt, Matt barely noticed the sword through the side of his eye. Matt was able to just barely dodge the attack and, with the back of his fist, hit Kanda in the face which caused him to stumble backwards a few steps. At the same time, Lavi decided to get in the action and swung his hammer at Matt. Matt managed to duck the attack and charge at Lavi. Lavi was unable to defend himself as Matt got a clean punch to Lavi's gut which sent him flying back a bit and hitting the ground. Matt aimed his hand at Lavi and an orb began to form. However, just as he was about to fire hit he was hit in the back and sent flying into a wall, destroying it and having the rubble collapse onto him.

Matt pulled himself out of the rubble. He didn't need to look to know who had hit him.

"It's good to see you too" Matt said as he coughed, the wind was knocked out of him in the last hit. "Lenalee." Lenalee was helping Lavi up when Matt stood back up. As Matt looked towards them he also saw something he did not expect. "Allen Walker, I didn't know you were still alive. I mean Bookman told me that you were but I still found it hard to believe." Allen was standing next to Lenalee, innocence activated.

"Yes, I'm alive and well" said Allen.

"What took you so long bean sprout" Kanda asked. Allen seemed a bit annoyed with Kanda calling him that but didn't really act out.

"Sorry, the matron was giving me trouble. She didn't want me to leave."

"So Tyki was right, I did end up doing a number on you back at Corfe" said Matt who sounded very interested in what Allen was telling Kanda.

"You didn't do as much as you think" said Allen. "I healed up quickly. The matron was giving me trouble over another mission."

"Very interesting" said Matt. "Akuma giving you trouble now" Matt teased, an evil grin on his face."

"Not at all" said Allen, realizing he was saying too much to his enemy. "But I didn't come here to talk to you."

"Of course not" said Matt who was still grinning. "You have your own mission to accomplish. I guess then I'm here to stop you." Matt then charged at Allen with great speed. Allen turned his arm into a sword and swung at Matt who easily dodged. Matt managed to get behind Allen as he recovered from his attack and went to punch Allen straight in the back. However, before he could get to him, Lenalee got in between the two and kicked Matt hard in the face, sending him flying into the air.

"Thanks Lenalee" said Allen as he turned around.

"Not a problem" said Lenalee. The 4 exorcists then began to run to where Matt was landing.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere, Road was searching through many of the buildings in the Forbidden City searching for the innocence. She had run into several groups of finders but nothing that would keep her entertained for very long. Eventually though she was searching through one of the larger buildings.<p>

"Man I'm bored" Road complained. "I can't find the innocence and everyone I've run into has been so boring." Road lazily searched through the main room and began searching the side rooms. "I should've stayed with Matt, he has all the fun." Road searched the rooms until she entered the last one where something caught her eye. A medium sized jade dragon, which was sitting on top of a counter. She had seen several of these before, even some that looked exactly like the one she saw, but there was something off about it that caught her attention. She walked over to it and stared at it.

"I wonder what little secrets you are hiding" Road asked the statue as she picked it up and smashed it against the ground. The statue broke into hundreds of pieces, and in the center of the ruined statue was what Road was searching for. She picked up the piece of innocence and stared at it for a moment before destroying it, letting the dust fall to the floor. "Well that took much longer than necessary" said Road as she left the building. "I guess I should find Matt now." Road looked up and could see some smoke clouds rising in other parts of the city, evidence to where Matt was fighting. She began to run in that direction to go and help him.

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><p>Matt crashed into the ground hard, from another one of Lenalee's kicks. Matt was slow to stand up and when he did he found himself at one end of a massive courtyard with a single large building close to where he was. Matt took the moment to catch his breath as he knew that the exorcists would be there any minute.<p>

"Damn it" said Matt as he held his side. "I think I broke a rib."

"Quit whining" said Majnun as he appeared.

"I'm not whining, I'm pointing out a fact." Matt the sighed. "Majnun, I don't think I can beat all 4 of them."

"What makes you say that" asked Majnun, interested in what Matt had to say.

"I just can't, these aren't weaker exorcists that I've fought before, they're strong, stronger than the rest."

"Doesn't mean you can beat them" said Majnun.

"Well unlike you, I don't have all of my powers."

"There's nothing I can teach you that would really help you in this situation if that's what you're referring to" said Majnun.

"Why do I find that hard to believe" said Matt.

"Matt, I gave you what is arguably your strongest attack, the madness orb. There's nothing that I can teach you that can compare to it."

"Well then you fight" said Matt. Majnun was taken back by this.

"What did you say" asked Majnun.

"You fight. Take over and fight for me."

"Are you sure you want that?"

"Yeah, you probably can take them on. I know I certainly can't."

"Matt you really aren't that weak, I'm pretty sure you can fight them. You have the ability to."

"I don't care Majnun! Why are you refusing all of a sudden? You've been more than willing before to take over."

"Yes, I know" said Majnun who then sighed. "If that's what you want then I will fight for you."

"Thank you Majnun" said Matt and Majnun disappeared. Allen, Lenalee, Kanda and Lavi finally reached where Matt was. They saw him hunched over on the ground.

"It looks like he gave up" said Kanda. This caught Matt's attention.

"Gave up" Matt asked as he began to look up revealing that his eyes were completely black. "Oh no, it's only just begun."

**Thanks of reading! Please review. Chapter 119 coming soon!**

**I apologize for the delay in the chapter. I just ran into major writer's block, and I couldn't write at all. That being said, I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was fun to write, once the stress of the writer's block went away. I realize that this was a shorter than average chapter and I apologize for that. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**So I realize that there wasn't a Betrayal of Madness this week and I apologize for that, I was just set back a bit due to my computer being broken and recently fixed so I really didn't have time to work on it. I will try to get it out as soon as I possibly can. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	119. Battle of the Forbidden City part 3

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own man, just the OC's**

Matt stood in front of the 4 exorcists, eyes completely black and a large grin on his face. Kanda and Allen were both taken aback by this, both remember clearly what those eyes meant, they remembered what happened back at the Acropolis. Lavi and Lenalee however were relatively unaware of what was going on.

"Hey Allen, is this that inner Noah you were talking about once" asked Lavi.

"Yeah, it is" said Allen as he readied himself for the fight. Majnun grinned.

"Aw, you remember me" said Majnun with an innocent smile. "I'm so happy you did."

"Shut up Noah" Kanda said with an angry look. Majnun frowned a little.

"What's the matter Kanda? You not happy to see me again?" As Majnun said this a madness clone rose up behind Kanda. The clone was about to attack Kanda swung his sword back and cut the head off the clone causing it to collapse and disappear in the ground. "Now why would you do that? He only wanted to say 'hi'" Majnun said with a playful voice.

"I thought I told you to shut up" yelled Kanda and swing his sword. As he did several netherworld insects flew out at Majnun. Majnun just stood there with a grin as several madness aura hands rose out of the ground and grabbed the insects, destroying them.

"Now, now Kanda, there's no need to be impatient" said Majnun. "Let's enjoy ourselves here. After all, it's such a rare opportunity for me to be in control. I want to enjoy myself." As he said this, the hands that destroyed the insects rapidly reached out to grab Kanda. Kanda jumped out of the way as the hands crashed into the ground. Majnun looked a bit disappointed when he saw that he missed.

"Damn, I missed" Majnun complained. "Oh well, I guess I'll have to try harder then." As he said this dozens of madness clones came out of the ground. As soon as they were fully out of the ground they began detonating, leaving large craters around them. Everyone managed to get out of the range of the explosions, but just barely. Lavi was still looking at the newly formed crater when suddenly Majnun appeared in front of him and punched him hard in the gut which sent him flying a bit before hitting the ground hard and rolling hard. Allen went to attack Majnun as he watched Lavi. Just as he swung his sword down, Majnun turned around and grabbed the sword with his left hand. Majnun's hand slid along the blade until he reached the handle. Majnun then grabbed the handle and then pulled the sword past him, pulling Allen with him. As Allen went forward, Majnun punched him in the face. Allen went immediately to the ground, releasing the sword from his hand.

As Majnun held the sword he saw Lenalee charging at him. Majnun then took the sword and threw it at Lenalee. Lenalee leapt into the air and dodge the sword which impaled into the ground. As she was in the air though, a madness aura hand reached out and grabbed her leg and threw her into the ground. Kanda at the same moment went to attack Majnun, but Majnun was able to sidestep the attack. Majnun dodged and weaved through Kanda's attacks until a wave of madness aura came rushing towards them. Majnun jumped out of the way and Kanda attempted to cut through the wave. For a bit Kanda was able to cut through the seemingly unending wave of madness aura until finally the wave became to large and crashed down on top of him. The wave carried him and crashed into a wall. The aura disappeared leaving Kanda lying on the ground. After lying there for a moment Kanda began to stand up slowly.

"Darn it, I thought that would've killed you" said Majnun, faking disappointment. "Then again I suppose if you died quickly it would be no fun for me." Kanda said nothing as he stood back up. He stared at Majnun for a moment before attacking again. Majnun looked disappointed as a madness aura hand grabbed him. "You offend me Kanda. How dare you fight Matt with more strength than me. I assure you, you won't survive long like that." The hand then threw Kanda a great distance before he hit the ground. At the same time Majnun noticed Lavi's hammer coming down on him. Majnun dove out of the way as the hammer hit the ground. Majnun rolled across the ground before immediately getting to his feet. As he did, Majnun threw what appeared to be a rope, made of madness aura, which wrapped around Lavi. Lave attempted to remove the rope but to no avail. Suddenly a loud screech could be heard being emitted from the rope.

"I assume you're familiar with this attack" said Majnun. "Seeing as you witnessed it at the North American Branch." The screech got louder and louder, sending Lavi to his knees, his hands covering his ears. Just as he was reaching his breaking point Allen cut through the rope immediately causing the rope to vanish. Majnun fell to a knee as he caught his breath, he realized though that he was vulnerable. Taking advantage to the moment Lenalee kicked Majnun with all her strength sending him flying towards the one large building in the massive courtyard. Majnun flew into the top of the building, smashing through it and continuing to fly through the air until he finally crashed hard onto the ground a good distance away from the building. Majnun rolled across the ground for a bit before coming to a stop.

Majnun lied there on the ground for a moment before slowly standing back up he looked up and saw Lenalee hurdling towards him using her iron shackles ability.

"Crap" Majnun said to himself as Lenalee crashed into him causing the ground around them to crater and a cloud of dust rose up. Allen and the others rushed to the edge of the crater hoping to see what had happened. They gazed into the cloud of dust unable to see anything until they saw a figure get thrown out of the crater. The body landed next to them and it turned out to be Lenalee. Allen rushed to Lenalee's side to see if she was alright. Allen saw that she was unconscious but she seemed to be alright apart from several relatively minor wounds. He looked back to the crater where the dust was starting to settle.

There, standing in the middle of the crater was Majnun, his clothes were torn up in places, and he had several deep gashes across his body and was bleeding badly. He breathed heavily as he finally noticed Allen and the others standing at the edge of the crater. Allen and the others were about to attack when suddenly hundreds of candles surrounded them.

"Don't even think about it" said Road as she appeared in front of them through her door. Majnun stood there in disbelief as Road walked up to him

"Road, what are you doing" asked Majnun. "I was in the middle of something."

"Yes well the mission is over and we're leaving" said Road as she summoned her door. "I'm not letting you stay in control of Matt and longer."

"Don't be that way Road, I was only doing this because he asked me to."

"I don't care" said Road. "Now let's get going." Road then walked through the door. Majnun stared at the door then back at the exorcist.

"Until next time" Majnun said to the exorcists before he entered the door himself which disappeared behind him. Leaving a ruined battlefield behind him.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 120 coming soon!I hope you enjoyed this chapter as it was a lot of fun to write. I apologize for the delay in the release of the chapter. I didn't intend it to take so long. However, that being said, school is becoming more difficult so I need to focus more on that than I can the chapters. That being said, I will update as often as I can, but don't be surprised of a few days go by without a chapter.**

**Also, Betrayal of Madness is almost ready for release! I've been having some troubles with it but it's almost ready! Anyways that's it for today. Until next time!**


	120. Returning from the Mission

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Road and Majnun, who was still in control of Matt's body, exited Road's door to find themselves back at Mont Saint Michel's main courtyard. Majnun calm face became a bit upset after a moment and stopped Road from walking back into the abbey.

"Hold on a second" said Majnun as he stopped Road.

"What is it" asked Road, there was a slight tone of distrust in her voice.

"Why did you interfere with my fight? If you had let me continue I would've beaten them and there would be 4 less exorcists to deal with."

"The mission was completed, the innocence there was destroyed" said Road, ignoring the irritation in Majnun's voice. "There was no longer any reason for us to stay." Majnun couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Now I know I'm usually not in control but that doesn't sound like the Road I know."

"Look, I just wanted the mission to be over with. When I noticed you were in control I knew that the mission should be over."

"Matt gave me permission to be in control" said Majnun. "I believe I once said that I had no intentions of taking over."

"I don't care if Matt gave you permission, I don't like you in control. Give Matt control again." Majnun stared at Road for a bit then smiled.

"Alright, alright. I'll give Matt control again" said Majnun. "It was good talking to you again Road. I do look forward to our next meeting."

"I won't hold my breath" said Road. Majnun then closed his eyes. After a moment he opened his eyes again which were back to their normal golden color; his form also returned to his normal Noah form. Road immediately became happier when she saw that Matt was back.

"Hello Road" said Matt with a smile.

"Welcome back Matt" Road said happily. "Hey Matt, why did you let him take over?" Matt looked at Road for a moment with a confused look. He wasn't paying attention while Majnun was in control so he didn't hear the previous conversation. That being said he knew that Road really didn't like Majnun.

"I was losing so I let him take over for a bit Road, don't worry" said Matt. "That being said Road, why do you care if he takes over for a bit? He's said before that he no longer had any intentions to take over me."

"I know but still he tried once" said Road looking a little ashamed at herself. "I just don't want him to get comfortable taking over again." Matt laughed a little.

"Don't worry yourself Road" said Matt and patted her on the head which somewhat annoyed her.

"Matt I don't think you should rely on him when you're in a jam."

"You're probably right. I'll just have to get better so I don't have to" said Matt. "Now let's just put this behind us. Road I take it you completed the mission?"

"Yep, it was pretty easy actually" said Road.

"Good, and for putting up with Majnun I guess I can open the vault and bring out some candy for you" said Matt. The moment he said this Road's eyes lit up. Matt laughed a little bit but suddenly grimaced in pain. Matt finally took notice to the injuries that Majnun had sustained in the fight.

"Matt you alright" asked Road though she sort of knew the answer already.

"Yeah I think so" said Matt as grimaced in pain. "I think I need to see the doctor though."

"What about my candy" Road asked almost impatiently.

"When I'm done with the doctor I'll open the vault. But right now I need you to go to Father and report on the mission."

"Fine" Road pouted and walked off. Matt grinned a little and limped to the doctor.

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><p>Matt arrived at the medical wing and the doctor there wasn't too surprised in Matt's condition, he was more than used to it. The wounds Matt had sustained during the mission were fairly severe but not life threatening in any way. He was quickly stitched up and was instructed to wait as his body replenished the blood that he lost. As he laid in a bed in the medical wing he called out to Majnun.<p>

"You know when I said you could take over my body I didn't tell you that you could wreck it" said Matt as he laid there on the bed. Majnun appeared in a chair next to the bed.

"What, didn't I tell you that when you regained control you would be a bit sore" Majnun said as he sat in the chair.

"No, no you didn't" said Matt, a bit annoyed with Majnun.

"Oh well…is it too late to warn you" Majnun asked sarcastically.

"Yes" said Matt who was not amused with Majnun's sarcasm.

"You're too cruel to me" said Majnun continuing to be sarcastic.

"Yes, and you're annoying" said Matt. "And besides, I don't really consider my condition to be 'sore'."

"Well I think you're being overly critical here" said Majnun as he stood up and walked to the edge of the bed. "After all you were losing when I took over and when I left I was more than winning."

"Right, that's why I'm in the medical wing."

"Again your words hurt me" said Majnun, now pretending to be offended. "Besides the way I see it you turned out just fine."

"Remind me never to let you in control again" said Matt as he sat up. Majnun grinned obviously enjoying their little conversation. However as Matt sat there Majnun vanished as Tyki walked into the room.

"Hello Tyki" said Matt.

"Hello Matt" said Tyki as he walked up to him. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but I'll manage" said Matt, Majnun immediately complained a little about what Matt said but was ignored. "What was it you needed?"

"The Earl wants you for a mission. It's supposedly a big one" said Tyki.

"Did he give any details?"

"Not yet. He just said that once you're ready the mission will begin."

"Interesting, well I think I should be ready in the next few days so let the Earl know that."

"Sure thing" said Tyki as he turned and went to leave the room. "Oh yeah by the way, Road was looking for you. She says that she wants her candy now."

"Do you think you can stall for an hour or two" asked Matt remembering that he had put off opening the vault.

"I'll try but no guarantees" said Tyki and he left the room. Matt then laid back down and tried to get a little rest before Road decided to come get him.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 121 coming soon!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter as it was a lot of fun to write! I need to really apologize for the lack of chapters recently. Unfortunately school has become my main priority and therefore I have less time to work and think about chapters. If I could update more I would and I feel really guilty about not updating. I will try to update at least once a week right now for Shadow but as of right now nothing is guaranteed.**

**Also, Betrayal of Madness also has a new chapter out! Betrayal will also be receiving less updates and I will explain more at the end of the new chapter of what I plan to do with it. Anyways that's it for today. Until next time! **


	121. The Void

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

**Author Note #1: Hi everybody…it's been a while…yeah….sorry about that…BUT I'm back and hopefully it won't be months on end before then next one comes out. This is just a little heads up that this chapter will seem off to you if you've read the previous chapter. That is because there was actually going to be a chapter before this but I just for the life of me couldn't put it to words. I'll be explaining what exactly happened next chapter so don't worry about that. Also, I'm a bit rusty in my writing so this chapter may just seem off in general, sorry about that. But enough of my rant enjoy the chapter! (Oh and if you're new to the story, hi, good to see you're reading but please just start from the beginning. Everything will hopefully make more sense).**

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><p>Matt sat down and leaned up against a tree at the edge of a forest that was next to a large open field that was covered by a thick fog. Matt seemed to be pretty worn out, as if he had been fighting for quite some time. His clothes were worn out and torn In some places. As he sat there Road's door appeared and Road walked out.<p>

"Hey there Road, what brings you here" asked Matt as he continued to sit."I'm here to bring you back home" said Road as she walked over to him.

"Is this an order from the Earl" asked Matt.

"Yes it is.""Liar" said Matt which caught Road off guard.

"You would question the Earl's orders" Road asked.

"I wouldn't if I knew the order was real, but it isn't.""And why would you say that?"

"Because I've never known the Earl to not press his advantage" said Matt. "And right now I've been carving my way through the countryside and will soon be at the Vatican's doorstep. He wouldn't stop the attack now."

"Fine I lied" Road said in defeat and annoyance. "But you really should come home and rest, if only for a little while. You've been fighting virtually nonstop for just over a month, you need to actually rest and regain your energy.""Fine, fine I'll come home" Matt said reluctantly.

"Thank you" said Road.

"Right after this battle" Matt said immediately with a grin.

"Wait, what?"

"I'll come home right after I'm done here, ok?"

"Fine, don't take too long then" said Road.

"Do I ever" Matt asked in an innocent voice.

"Always" said Road and then she summoned her door and left.

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><p>"Right then" said Matt as he stood back up. "Are we all ser to go" Matt asked to a nearby akuma.<p>

"Of course my lord" said the akuma. "The fog is lifting and the Order is out there waiting for us in force.""Good, then we shouldn't keep them waiting" said Matt.

"They have those special cannons with them my lord, it could cause some trouble for us" said the akuma.

"Well that's why we brought out own, go get them ready. I'll get things started here" said Matt. The akuma bowed and ran off in a large crown of akuma in their human forms. Matt scanned the group who were all looking at him.

"Well what are you all waiting for" Matt asked. "Get out there and kill them all!" The akuma then began to charge out of the woods.

Hundreds of akuma came pouring out of the woods towards the hundreds of finders and exorcists who were on the far side of the field. When the Order saw them coming they blew a horn and they began to charge the akuma. As they got closer to each other exorcists began activating their innocence and the akuma began taking their true form. Just as the two forces were about to meet the Order began firing their special innocence cannons at the akuma., each shot destroying several akuma. It was also at this time that Matt joined the battle as well.

The two forces crashed into each other like waves and fierce fighting broke out. As Matt reached the fighting explosions of dark matter began erupting around him. He turned around to see that his cannons, akuma cannons were walking out of the woods. The akuma cannons were a creation of the Earl to counter the innocence cannons of the Order. Capable of walking on these cannons fired concentrated dark mater. These cannons easily outmaneuvered the Order's cannons though packed less of a punch to compensate for their mobility.

As the akuma cannons continued to move, the innocence cannons of the Order began to focus fire on the akuma cannons. Many akuma cannons were destroyed early on by having their legs blown out from under them. One cannon however lost two legs just as it was firing and ended up shooting directly behind Matt. The explosion sent Matt flying into the air and crashing hard into the ground. Matt was dazed by the attack and was slow to get back up. He finally got back to his feet but just as he did a circular beam of light pierced through the center of his chest. Matt in shock saw that the attack came from a nearby exorcist just before a nearby akuma cannon crushed him. As the light faded a clean hole through his body was visable and blood began pouring out. Matt stood there in shock unable to move until his legs gave way and he collapsed to the ground.

* * *

><p>Matt laid on the ground bleeding heavily from his wound. He felt life fading away when he suddenly heard a familiar laugh. He weakly looked up to see Majnun approaching him.<p>

"Buy you really messed up big time" said Majnun as he crouched down next to Matt who said nothing. "I mean it's not like I didn't see it coming, but still."

"What do you mean you saw this coming" Matt asked weakly.

"Seriously? You're going to make me explain this again" Majnun asked, a bit annoyed. This only confused Matt even more.

"Again? What are you talking about?"

"Oh come on, why must you always forget" Majnun asked as he stood up. "Well I guess I could explain but first I need to save you.""What? How are you going to s-" Matt was cut off by Majnun kicking him in the side of the head. When Matt opened his eyes after the kick he found himself in a pure white room with nothing in it, no doors or anything. He noticed that his clothes weren't ruined anymore and that the wound he received was gone. "Did you have to kick me" Matt asked, annoyed, as he sat up.

"No, but it's the quickest way to drag you back here" said Majnun. "Besides if I hadn't done anything you would've died in that little world of yours and that wouldn't have been good for either of us.""Sort of seems like I'm dead now" said Matt as looked around the white room. "Which must mean I'm in hell because you're still here with me.""Funny, but no, you're not dead. At least not yet" said Majnun as he helped Matt stand up. "You're simply in your mind."

"Then where's the city" asked Matt.

"In another part. This is your subconscious, it's not very impressive I know. You know I always figured your head was empty. I guess I just had to dig deep enough to see it" Majnun laughed.

"Hilarious" said Matt realizing that was a slight payback for his earlier comment. "So this is all your fault then."

"Oh no, this here is all your fault. Your recklessness got you into this little predicament here" said Majnun. "In fact I came down here to save you.""Start explaining.""I don't feel like it" said Majnun.

"And why not" Matt asked, irritated with Majnun.

"Because while you might not remember it, you and I have had this conversation quite a few times now.""Really? How many times" asked Matt.

"I stopped counting after 100" said Majnun. "And it's been a lot more than that.""I don't believe you.""You've said that the last few dozen times" Majnun shot back. "Look, I'm going to cut to the chase here. You're not conscious and I can't bring you back to the real world myself. You need to do that yourself.""Some help you are" Matt grumbled to himself. "So how do I do this?"

"Simple, wake up" said Majnun.

"As helpful as always" Matt said sarcastically.

"I'm not kidding around here" said Majnun. "You need to wake up. Otherwise you'll just slip back into that little battle of yours and you'll die and I'll have to bring you back before that can happen and explain all this over again and I DON'T WANT TO!"

"Ok then I'll wake up. How do I do that" asked Matt."Well give me a moment to think. This is actually the first time you haven't slipped back into that little world before giving me an answer.

"Well hurry up" said Matt but before he knew it Majnun created a giant hammer and smashed Matt in the face with it. Matt hit the ground hard though it didn't feel like it. And when Matt reopened his eyes he found himself lying in a bed.

**Author's note #2: Thanks for reading everyone! I really do hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'm sorry if the chapter seemed confusing or a bit off in the reading. Like I said earlier I'm a bit rusty and it'll take time to get back into the swing of things and I'll bridge the gap between chapters next chapter (which will be coming soon…hopefully). So please review this chapter, I love to hear what you think of it! If you have any questions or suggestions please leave a comment or pm me, I always respond. Until next time! (hopefully it won't take so long this time).**


	122. Return of Madness

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own -man, just the OC's**

**Author's note: In case this chapter doesn't explain what happened for you, please read the bold writing at the end of the chapter, I've explained a little more there.**

Matt stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, comprehending what on earth what was going on. The last thing he remembered was Majnun hitting him then the next thing he knew he was in a bed in the medical room in Mont Saint Michel. He had no idea how he got here. Matt began to lean up but found it somewhat difficult to do, as if his body was restricting him. As he leaned up he heard some cracks that came from his right arm. He looked to it and saw an iv coming out of his arm. However what was more strange was the cracks going across his entire arm. As he moved his arm the cracks increased in size and rocky dust began falling onto the bed. Matt came to the conclusion that he must have placed subconsciously created a stone armor around him, a sort of protection mechanism. Matt pulled the iv out of his arm and a machine began to beep. To the right of his bed was a monitoring device, where the beeping was coming from. Matt began to stretch the rest of his body, hearing more cracks as he did. Suddenly he felt the presence of someone in the room. He quickly turned ready to defend himself when he saw one of the doctors standing there. Matt immediately relaxed and rubbed his head.

"It's good to see that you're finally awake again" said the doctor. "We were worried that you wouldn't wake up again."

"What do you mean, again" Matt asked.

"Well you've been out for a long time" said the doctor as he approached the bed to turn off the monitoring device.

"And exactly how long is that" Matt asked, growing more impatient.

"Almost 13 months" said the doctor. This caught Matt completely off guard.

"I've been out for over a year" Matt practically yelled. The doctor seemed react to Matt's yell.

"That's correct sir."

"I don't even remember what happened to me" said Matt as he sat back on his bed trying hard to think back.

"It was your last mission" the doctor explained. "Sheril had you and Road go out to assassinate a political target back in Portugal that was looking to replace him as Prime Minister. The target was supposedly backed by the order. When you got there you managed to kill the target but the Order was also there and a large fight broke out. A new exorcist was there an had a very powerful innocence. I don't know the details of what the innocence was but it blew a massive hole through the center of your chest." Matt remembered in the dream like battle he had being his by an attack that caused that injury.

"I see…wait, how do you know so all this detail" Matt asked.

"Road told me what happened. She herself didn't see you get hit, just you falling to the ground. She got you out of there immediately afterwards. To be honest I'm shocked you even survived the attack. I suppose being a Noah has its benefits."

"Of course it does" said Matt as he stood up. As he did though he almost immediately lost his balance. The doctor prevented him from falling. "Thanks" said Matt as he slowly started walking. "So where is everyone?"

"The mansion back in Portugal had been completed about 6 months ago" explained the doctor. "Sheril had everyone move in. The akuma guarding the fortress are still here, as well as most the medical staff."

"Huh, I didn't realize the mansion was going to take so long to build" said Matt.

"Well apparently it was built pretty much completely out of stone, so it can't be burnt so easily." This made Matt laugh.

"Makes sense, the last thing we need is to lose another house via fire."

"Oh there's one last thing I should mention to you" said the doctor.

"Oh? And what is that?"

"The Order has been poking it's nose around here over the last year. We've had several small attacks take place. But it has been nothing the akuma here couldn't handle.""Is this with Lily and Jynx" Matt asked.

"The first few yes, but they left with Sheril, under much protest."

"I see, well things certainly seemed interesting while I was asleep.""I suppose" said the doctor as he shrugged. "Should I inform everyone that you're awake."

"No, not yet. I still need a little time to get myself situated" said Matt as he left the medical room for his room. The doctor followed close behind. "I should also mention that some akuma scouts have said that another Order army is on their way. Not too large. Apparently they are checking the defenses of the fortress."

"God damn, why are they so persistent" said Matt.

"Not sure, perhaps it's because this area used to belong to them. Maybe it's because they think you're dead and they really want this place back now that they're gone.""Well they're be surprised to see me won't they" Matt grinned. "I really don't think you should be fighting for a while" said the doctor."Hah, that's never stopped me before, though you might be right. I do have a bit of a headache going for me" said Matt. As they walked the sound of a bang could be heard. "So…ten bucks says that is the army you were talking about.""Probably but I wouldn't know" said the doctor."Right…well then you head to wherever you go during an attack I'll take care of this." Said Matt, the doctor looked at Matt curiously.

"Matt, like I said, you shouldn't be fighting.""Don't care doc, I've been up for all of maybe 20 minutes or so, I'm a bit pissed that the Order is attacking. So please, just leave to my own devises." Matt seemed suddenly very annoyed and angry.

"Well even if I said no, it's not like I can actually enforce it" the doctor said reluctantly.

"Good, I'll be quick about this" said Matt and he turned around and began to head towards to main entrance to the abbey. Before he left though he changed clothes so he was wearing light weight shirt and pants. He also grabbed his black trench coat.

* * *

><p>Matt made his way outside into the small village portion of the fortress. The sounds of a few cannons could be heard from a distance and the impacts into the stone walls. The akuma, still in their human forms were beginning to gather in the streets. Matt walked through the street leading to the entrance. The akuma seemed a bit shocked to see Matt walking.<p>

"My lord, you're awake" one akuma said.

"Yes, yes I'm awake now don't bother with these attackers, I'll take care of it."

"But…my lord…" said the akuma.

"Don't, I'm not exactly in the best of moods" said Matt. "Is the tide down?"

"Yes it is" said the akuma. The rest of the akuma talked among themselves as Matt opened the gate to the fortress. Matt looked across the way to see a somewhat large group standing on the solid ground on the other side of the causeway. Matt continued to walk, his skin color turned grey as he got closer.

On the other side of the causeway the Order noticed Matt approaching. "Sir, someone's coming this way from the fortress" said A finder. "I can see that" said an exorcist. Is it a Noah?"

"Looks like it, the person does have grey skin but he seems a bit off."

"Explain" said the exorcist.

"Well the doesn't seem like he's in the best of shape" said the finder. Matt was in fact not walking straight and had a slight limp, a result of only being awake for a short time."Well that's convenient. Let's capture him" said the exorcist. He as well as about 30 finders moved to surround Matt. Matt didn't even put up a fight as they surrounded him. He simply stared at the ground. The exorcist stood in the front of the group in front of Matt.

"I don't recognize him" said the exorcist.

"So…you must be new then" Matt said dryly. "Poor you, if you had any brains you would know better than to be attacking here.""Why not, the previous occupier of this fortress was reportedly killed over a year ago, you must be a new incarnation of a Noah.""So deluded, you should be more cautious to believe everything told to you. But it doesn't matter now, you're hear and you're cannons back there are really pissing me off."

"Well I'm so sorry" the exorcist said sarcastically. "I'll try to be quieter next time. But you will be coming with me. Take him prisoner."

"Um sir, I think that might prove to be difficult" said one finder who recognized who Matt was.

"Don't question it, he's obviously too weak to fight here." Matt then began to laugh. "Oh you crack me up" said Matt as he laughed. "You really think you could tell. But let me tell you something, I have been awake for all of 30 minutes, asleep for a year and I know for a fact that you can't take me prisoner…"

"Wait, a year" said the exorcist who was starting to connect the dots. "And to top it all off your stupid cannons have put me into a really foul mood. So I'm going to have to ask you to die here." Matt then looked up his eyes were completely black. Matt raised his right arm to the side. As he did, stone spikes shot out of the ground around him killing everyone but the exorcist who had fallen to the ground with a stone spike piercing his knee. Matt walked up to him, his right arm was covered in a black claw. The blackness however seemed to be moving. Matt grabbed the exorcist's face with his clawed hand.

"Die" said Matt. The exorcist let out a scream before his body went limp, his mind destroyed. Matt threw the body to the ground. The claw the disappeared and matt's eyes returned to their golden color. Matt stretched again then looked at the bodies surrounding him. "Well I guess it's time to get back to work."

**Hello everyone! Thanks so much for reading! Please review and let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

**Ok so if anyone is still confused about the last 2 chapters (including this one) I'll explain. I had originally planned a chapter where Matt and Road were going to kill a politician but things go wrong and Matt gets really badly wounded which sends him into a coma. The problem is I could never really write the chapter and have it seem good so I just skipped over it and made references to it in this chapter. Sorry about that…**

**Oh and before I forget, I was thinking about having an actual cover art for the story (because fanfiction decided to add that for whatever reason not that I'm complaining) and because I can't draw I'm asking for help in that. If anyone wants to draw a cover art for the story let me know. So anyways I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I hope to update again real soon! Until next time!**


	123. Returning to the Family

**Disclaimer: I do not own -man, just the OC's**

Matt made his way back into the abbey after he wiped out the attacking forces from the Order. Matt sat down on his bed and thought about what he should do next.

"You realize that it's only a matter of time that the Earl will find out you're awake" Matt said to himself.

"And is that really a bad thing" Majnun asked as he appeared in front of Matt. Matt sat there silently glaring at Majnun. "What? What did I do" Majnun said after several moment of silence.

"Nothing" Matt sighed, "just remembering you hitting me in the head twice.""Oh get over yourself, you woke up didn't you" said Majnun. "Yeah, which is why I'm not saying anything.""Well someone seems in a bad mood, a bit surprising for someone who just woke up after 8 years.""Heh, go figure" said Matt.

"Anyways…about what you said a moment ago, why is it such a bad thing for the Earl to know you're awake?"

"I never said it was a bad thing" said Matt. "I was merely stating a fact. There's no way he wouldn't notice that little incident. Plus all the akuma stationed here saw me. I guess I'll see if he was paying attention."

"Again, why is this such a big deal" asked Majnun.

"It's not really, I just want to meet up with the family back in Portugal before he comes and starts sending me on missions again.""Interesting, but suit yourself, it's not like I can really stop you" said Majnun.

"Damn straight you can't" said Matt, Majnun laughed.

"So when are you going to head out. If you aren't going to get a ark gate then it's going to take a few days to get back to Portugal."

"I am aware of that" said Matt. "I guess I'll have to leave today."

"Not paying attention to the time are you" said Majnun. "It's almost dusk. There won't be any trains heading out right now.""And you know this how" Matt asked.

"Well…you got me there, I don't know I'm just basing it off common sense" said Majnun. "So let's say there is a train heading out tonight, how will you get a ticket to board? After all, if you don't want the Earl, or Sheril finding out you can't go spending money or use the ark gates."

"Majnun, in all the years you've annoyed me have you ever seen not get something I wanted?"

"Countless" Majnun said sarcastically.

"It won't be a problem, I don't need to get a ticket, I'm sure some civilian would be more than happy to…'donate' a ticket to me.""So that's how you're going to do it" said Majnun, catching onto Matt's plan. "Not exactly subtle is it?"

"Meh, I'm not too worried about it. All I need to do is get on a train." Matt then rang a bell and the doctor from earlier entered the room. "What are you doing" Matt asked the doctor. "I called for one of the servants.""I don't know if you've forgotten but everyone except a few doctors moved out back to the mansion.""Fine, then you need to do what I say here" said Matt, not really caring for the doctor's explanation.

"Very well" the doctor said reluctantly. "What is it that you need?"

"I need to know if there's a train heading to Lisbon, Portugal tonight" said Matt.

"I'm pretty sure there is a train heading that way in the town nearby" said the doctor. "Some of the servants that didn't use the ark gate took a night train.""Good then I'll be off then" said Matt as he stood up.

"Shouldn't you pack or something" asked the doctor.

"No need, once I get back home I'll have Road open her door and I'll grab my stuff later" Matt explained.

"Very well then I guess I'll head out tomorrow then.""Wait a few days then head to the mansion" said Matt. "Don't want you to get there before me now do we."

"Well if you're looking to surprise them then that makes sense" said the doctor. Matt walked over to his desk and began writing on a piece of paper. After a minute Matt took the paper and handed it to the doctor. "What's this" asked the doctor.

"Give it to one of the akuma down in the village" said Matt. "They're instructions on what to do now that I'm leaving. Take it to them immediately.""Very well" said the doctor and he left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt got changed into new clothes though the clothes he changed into didn't vary much from what he was wearing earlier. Matt then bandaged his left arm, put on black gloves and then put on his trench coat again and left the abbey. Matt made it to the train station in a nearby town. As the doctor said there was a train preparing to leave for Lisbon. Matt looked around at the people looking to get on the train when he saw a wealthy couple walking towards the train. Matt cut them off.<p>

"I'm sorry I couldn't help but notice but you two look very well to do" Matt said nicely.

"What of it" said the wealthy man who seemed annoyed with Matt for cutting him off.

"Well I was just wondering if you would be heading to Lisbon in first class."

"Yes I am, but that shouldn't matter to you" said the man as he tried to moved past Matt who then suddenly grabbed the man's arm.

"Oh you don't understand" Matt continued to say in a friendly voice and smile, "I'm suppose to be traveling in first class myself but I've seemed to have lost my ticket. I was wondering if you might lend me yours."

"No I will certainly not, my wife and I are going on a trip" said the man as he tried to break free of Matt's grip which only got tighter despite Matt's unchanging façade.

"Oh I don't think you have a choice in the matter" said Matt. "No why don't you and your wife come with me for a moment." Matt pulled the man outside of the train station where there was no one around. Matt then tightened his grip more until he broke the man's arm. Before the man could scream Matt took his other hand and broke his neck. The man fell to the ground. The wife of the man stood there in horror and before she could let out a scream a stone spike shot out from the ground and pierced her chest killing her.

"Geez, it's as if they hadn't seen someone kill another before" Matt said dryly as he searched the man for his ticket. Once he did the ground seemed to absorb the man and his wife. Matt quickly made his way back into the station and onto a private car in first class. Soon after the train started up and was on it's way.

* * *

><p>Two days later Matt's train finally pulled into the station in Lisbon. As Matt stepped out of the train he stretched his limbs as he really hadn't done much but sit and sleep the entire trip. Matt then left the station and began to walk. The station is located in the heart of the city and the mansion was located on the outskirts of the city which unfortunately was several miles away. It ended up taking several hours before he began to reach the edge of the city<p>

"You know I'm a bit surprised that nobody has noticed who you are" said Majnun as he walked next to Matt.

"What do you mean" Matt muttered under his breath so that nobody would noticed him talking.

"Well you are the son of the Prime Minister, you're a public figure. I would think that people in the city would recognize you.""Well it has been several years" said Matt. "And there hasn't been a photo of me since we left Portugal after the Order attacked the mansion." Soon enough Matt reached the front drive of the mansion. Matt looked down the long road and was surprised by what he saw. The mansion was more of a castle, or at least a small one. The exterior was almost completely stone. The new mansion was easily double the size of the one that was destroyed all those years ago.

"Well…this seems a bit pretentious" said Matt."Says the guy who owns a freaking fortress on a loan mountain in a bay of France" said Majnun.

"Hey, I don't need to hear that from you" Matt shot back. "Something tells me you won't win the argument if you bring it up to Sheril, or anyone else for that matter" Majnun laughed. "Heck I don't even think your akuma, who would agree with anything you say wouldn't agree with you.""Oh just shut up already" said Matt as he began to walk towards the mansion.

"I'm just saying…"Majnun continued to tease.

"And I'm just saying 'shut up'" said Matt.

"Fine, be that way" said Majnun. "This whole thing should prove to be interesting anyways.""I'll try not to disappoint" Matt said sarcastically.

"Oh I know you won't" Majnun laughed, which made Matt glare at him. Matt reached the front door and stood in front of the large double doors in front of him. "So…I was just wondering, are you just going to stand there like an idiot or are you going to knock?"

"Oh shut up for once" Matt said. "I'm just preparing myself."

"Preparing yourself? Preparing yourself for what? It's not like you're going to open the door and everyone is going to try and kill you."

"I wouldn't be surprised if they did" Matt said to himself, he knew Majnun was right he just didn't want to give him the satisfaction of him admitting it. A minute more passed.

"You're still standing here" said Majnun. "You know you can admit it to me if you're nervous or something I won't make fun of you, much.""Yeah, yeah I'm going" said Matt and with a deep breath he turned the door knobs and pushed the double doors open.

**Thanks for reading! Please review as I really do appreciate them!Ok so here's how this is going to go, this was going to be a much longer chapter but I found myself taking longer than I thought on well…Matt's arrival than I thought so I'm breaking it down into two chapters (so the next one might be a little short). Don't worry though there won't be a very long gap between chapters as I'm hoping to get the next chapter out tomorrow (or later today I'm not quite sure yet). So bear with it a little. Anyways thanks again for reading! Until next time!**


	124. Family Reunion part 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray-man, just the OC's**

The doors swung open and Matt walked into the large foyer. The entrance was wide and grand, much like the old mansion which once stood here. A large chandelier hanged above him and in front was a grand staircase which leads to the second floor. A balcony surrounds the entire room from the second floor. A few servants that were in the room looked at Matt, a surprised look on their face. Matt didn't recognize them so he assumed that they were hired during the time he wasn't awake.

"Excuse me sir, can we help you" asked one of the servants.

"That depends, are you looking to help" asked Matt who knew that these servants did not recognize him.

"If you are a guest of our master then we are here to serve" said the servant. "But we weren't expecting visitors today.""Well that would make sense seeing as I only woke up yesterday" Matt said to himself. He then turned back to the servants. "That is fine, I'll go up and find my way around." Matt then began to walk but was stopped by the servant who grabbed his arm.

"I'm sorry sir, but if you aren't expected I cannot allow you to leave this room."

Matt's face went from a very light tone to a very serious tone.

"I'd let go of my arm if I were you. At least if you want to keep that hand at least" said Matt in a very threatening tone.

"Sir, I cannot let you go upstairs, I'm going to have to ask you to leave" said the servant who was under the impression that Matt was bluffing. Matt had had it with the servant, he was just about to kill the man when a familiar voice coming from the top of the stairs.

"What's going on down there. Why is there so much noise" asked the voice."I'm sorry sir, but we have an uninvited guest trying to go upstairs" said the servant who was still grasping Matt's arm.

"An uninvited guest" the voice asked.

"Is this the way you treat family that you haven't seen for a while Tyki" asked Matt as he looked up the stairs at him. Tyki couldn't believe who it was, he was sure his eyes were playing tricks on him.

"But..but when? How?…" Tyki couldn't form a sentence he was so surprised."What now you can't talk either" Matt asked sarcastically.

"Matt" Tyki finally managed to say after a moment of shock. "When you're awake!"

"Well I think that's an obvious statement seeing as I'm standing here" said Matt.

"Well yes but it's still a great surprise" said Tyki. "Why didn't you let us know you were coming home?"

"Figured I'd surprise you" said Matt. "Plus I wanted to get myself settled a bit before I came back seeing as you left me back at the fortress."

"Well the doctors said we shouldn't have moved you. So we left you there. It's not like you were in any danger.""The Order attacked the monastery the day I woke up" said Matt.

"Did they know you were awake" Tyki asked, surprised to hear that there was an attack.

"If they did they would've sent at least twice as many people to attack" Matt laughed a bit. "My guess is that rumors of you all leaving spread to the Order so they went to get it back.""That would make sense, it was just over a year ago we left" said Tyki. "By the way where are the doctors that were stationed there?"

"I sent them on their way" said Matt. "Gave them a nice vacation before reporting here. I assume there's a hospital wing in this new mansion?"

"You would assume correctly" said Tyki. "I suppose I should show you around a bit as the mansion is much different from the one that used to be here."

"So I've noticed" said Matt who pulled his arm from the servants grip, who was standing there in a bit of shock. Matt began to climb the stairs when Tyki looked at the servants.

"Well what are you all standing around for? Get back to your duties." The servants snapped out of it and began to disperse.

* * *

><p>Matt had just reached the top of the stairs and turned to Tyki. "So where is everyone" Matt asked.<p>

"Sheril is in his office. Apparently he's running for reelection for Prime Minister" said Tyki.

"Is that so? Well I'm sure he'll do fine last time I checked, which admittedly was a while ago he didn't have any real opponents for the position" said Matt.

"And he still doesn't, he has the public on his side so only a few minor polical parties are trying to get the office. But they don't stand much of a chance."

"Good to hear. So where's Road?"

"Road? Well…"Tyki had to think about it for a moment. "Actually I don't know where she is right now. She had a mission a few days ago but she's sort of kept to herself the last few days, something about her being tired or something. I wasn't really paying attention to be honest. As for Lily and Jynx are out right now running some errands, they should be back in a few hours."

"Fair enough. So where do you want to start" asked Matt.

"Well I suppose we could start with your room" said Tyki.

"Alright, lead the way" said Matt. Just as he was about to start walking Matt heard something behind him. Matt turned around only to see a quick blur then suddenly two feet were hitting him in the face. Tyki stood there in a bit of surprise as Matt slammed into the ground. As he hit the ground the feet that were firmly planted on his face push off then landed on his gut, knocking the wind out of him. As Matt went to catch his breath he looked up to see who it was. There standing on top of him was Road. For many reasons Matt wasn't all to surprised that it was Road. Road stared at Matt with a mix of happiness and annoyance. She continued to stand on top of Matt as she seemed to be waiting for something.

"Um…hi?" Matt said a bit weakly as he tried to get up. But Road stopped him by using one of her feet to force his hard back down.

"Two years we haven't spoken, you show up here randomly and the first thing you have to say is 'hi'" Road asked, clearly annoyed.

"Well what do you expect me to say" Matt said, his voice muffled by Road's shoe, which was still firmly planted in Matt's face.

"How about 'Hey Road, sorry for being a dumbass'?"

"Now why would I say that" asked Matt. This made Road only more angry. She then lifted her foot and stomped on Matt face.

"Now Road, be nice, he's only been her less than 5 minutes" said Tyki, who was clearly enjoying this.

"No" Road protested. "He's being a jerk."

"Says the girl who is stomping my face into the ground" Matt added, voice still muffled. Road then stomped on his face again. "My point exactly." Road goes to stomp on his face one more time but Matt grabs her foot and throws to the side. Road gets up and walks over to Matt who had stood up. She punched him once then stopped."You done yet" asked Matt.

"Yep" said Road who now had a smile. "So how are you?"

"Well apart from a moment ago just fine. Now, my face is sore" said Matt.

"Sorry about that" said Road.

"Yeah, no you're not" Matt said with a grin which made Road laugh."You're right, I'm not" Road laughed. She then lightly hugged Matt. "But I did miss you. Things have been boring the last two years.""What would you all do without me" said Matt. "But I'm sure you managed."

"Well if you two have finished your little fight we should get going" Tyki asked, who was a bit impatient now that the fighting had stopped. "So will we get to see Sheril" asked Matt.

"Later, as I said earlier he's pretty busy right now and he doesn't want to be disturbed. We'll go see him closer to dinner time.

"Fine" said Matt. Tyki led Matt and Road through the mansion.

Most of the rooms were similar to rooms from the old mansion, though much larger than before. Eventually they entered one of the wings of the mansion. There was a large door at the end of a hallway.

"And this is your room" said Tyki. "Hope you like it, we've had a while to work on it." Tyki opened the door and Matt walked in with Road not far behind.

The room was very large, the room was like an office. There were rows and rows of bookshelves around the room. Towards the back of the room was a desk which faced a large window which looked out to the backyard. There were also a few chairs and couches which surrounded a medium sized table. "This is your office space" said Tyki.

"Do I need an office" Matt asked.

"Not really no, but we had a lot of books and figured you could find a use for them" said Tyki. "Your room is upstairs." The three walked up a set of stairs which led to an almost equally large room. In it was a large bed, way to large for just Matt.

"Why such a large bed" Matt asked.

"Well…Lily will probably insist on staying in the same room as you, and you know what Jynx is like" Tyki teased a little. "Shut it" said Matt, though he knows it's true. He continued to look around. A few tables and chairs were scattered around the room, as well as a fireplace.

"So what do you think" asked Road.

"Well it's certainly impressive I'll give you that" said Matt.

"Glad you like it" said Tyki. "Well we'll let you get settled. You'll find a fully stocked wardrobe in your closet if you need it. I'll meet up with you in a few hours by Sheril's office. I'm sure Road will show you the way if she stays here.""Well I was thinking about letting him get lost" said Road who gave an evil grin. "You will do no such thing" said Matt.

"Fine…" Road sighed.

"Alright, see you then" said Tyki who walked down the stairs and left the room.

**Thanks for reading! Please review (as it really does keep me motivated).**

**So…how's everyone doing? I know it's been a while and I'm really sorry about that. Life decided to get in the way of me writing. I really wanted to continue writing but I sadly kept getting distracted. I decided I wanted to change things up ever so slightly so I reread everything I wrote so far so I knew what I was doing. Don't worry I promise this time to get chapters out more frequently. I know I've said it before but things are a bit easier for me so I should have more time to write new chapters. So keep an eye out for new chapters, I'm really excited to get back into the swing of things.**


	125. Family Reunion part 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own DGM, just the OC's**

* * *

><p>Matt walked over to his new bed and sat down on it. It was softer than he expected, probably due to the fact that he hadn't actually slept on a soft bed for the better part of 8 years. As he sat down he looked over to see that Road was still in the room.<p>

"You not going with Tyki" Matt asked. Road looked at Matt as if just coming out of a deep thought.

"Figured I'd bug you a little bit more" Road teased, but that moment of thought didn't go unnoticed.

"What are you thinking" asked Matt.

"Nothing really, just thinking about what's going to happen now" said Road as she walked up to Matt.

"Well I suppose things will go back to normal" said Matt as he leaned back onto the bed.

"Easier said than done."

"What do you mean" Matt asked, curious about what had happened in the last 8 years that had Road wondering so much.

"A lot has changed Matt, especially in our war with the Black Order" Road explained. Matt leaned back up to listen. "The Order has a lot of influence today."

"Is that so" Matt said with a bit of surprise. "I didn't think that would happen."

"Well it does when the pope decides to take direct control of the Black Order" Road commented.

"Should've figured something like that would happen" said Matt covering his tracks a bit, having the pope in charge of the Order makes a lot of sense, something that even 8 years ago made sense.

"Now most countries have are well patrolled by the Order and making it harder for the akuma and the other Noahs to operate" Road explained. "Stop, stop, stop" Matt interrupted. "I thought you were going to annoy me not make me depressed.""Hey you asked" Road protested."Yeah and I change my mind. I'm sure I'll figure it out later." Road then hit Matt in the stomach just hard enough to hurt a little. Matt fell to his side, playing up the hit and rolled off the bed onto the floor. He immediately got up so Road couldn't step on him again.

A few hours passed and Road and Matt passed the time talking about what had happened over the last 8 years. Road did her best to avoid talking about the war but nevertheless it came up.

"Well I suppose we should go and find Tyki" said Matt as he got up from the couch on the lower floor of his room.

"I suppose" Road sighed, she was bored anyways. The two then left the room and headed towards Sheril's office. As Matt didn't really know the way he followed Road along the many hallways passing room after room which he had no idea what was in them. As they turned one corner when he was suddenly bumped into by one of the servants. The servant was moving in such a rush that they fell to the ground. There was a loud crash and the sound of breaking glass showing that the servant was carrying something. Matt looked own at the servant and was surprised at what he saw.

The servant was a girl, much younger than any of the servants that worked there. In fact, she looked about as old as Matt looked, which was close to 17 years old. This confused Matt, it was obvious that this was a newer servant but he never though Sheril would hire someone so young.

"I'm so sorry" said the servant girl as she scrambled to pick up the broken bits of glass on the ground. "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." Matt looked at the girl still a bit confused at the situation.

"No it's fine" Matt said in a plain voice. "Where were you heading?"

"To the master's study sir, he sent for a cup of tea a few moments ago."

"Right, well make sure you clean up this mess before you do anything else" said Matt then he rejoined Road. He had no idea why that situation was so confusing for him, but regardless of that he was going to talk to Sheril about this.

"You alright" asked Road.

"Just fine" said Matt as the two began to walk again.

* * *

><p>It took a minute or so of more walking before they saw Tyki standing in front of a double wooden door,<p>

"There you two are" said Tyki when he noticed Matt and Road approaching. "Where have you two been?"

"We were delayed" said Matt.

"He was being mean to one of the servants" Road lied.

"Is that so?""No" said Matt. "But I'm contemplating being mean to you" Matt stared at Road.

"Oh no" said Road, faking to be frightened. "What ever shall I do." Matt simply sighed as his empty threat was called.

"So is he available to talk to" asked Matt.

"He is" said Tyki. "Sheril just finished up his work for the day.""Convenient" Matt said to himself.

"Right then shall we" Tyki asked. Matt nodded and the three entered the room. The office was similar to every other office Sheril had before, apparently he didn't like change.

"Tyki, what is it" asked Sheril as he was putting something into a desk drawer. "I told you I would be joining everyone for dinner." Sheril then looked up to see Matt. The two stared silently for a moment. Suddenly Sheril became the over protective father that Matt so hated. "Oh Matt I'm so glad to see you" Sheril said with genuine happiness in his voice. He rushed over to Matt looking to hug him but was met by Matt's left hand. The indestructible black hand made a loud thud as Sheril's face went straight into it.

"Father, you know I don't like it when you do this" Matt said with a sigh. "If you're going to obsess over one of us, please obsess over Road, she actually likes it.""It's true" Road said with a smile.

"But it's been so long" Sheril said, his face still in Matt's hand.

"Don't care" said Matt as he pushed Sheril away from him a bit.

"Your cruel to your father" Sheril complained childishly.

"Whatever" said Matt. "However, I do want to know one thing. Since when do you hire children to be servants" Matt asked. Sheril stood there confused for a brief moment.

"Oh you must be referring to Alice" said Sheril. "I took her in as a servant a year or so ago."

"What is with your obsession with adoptions" Matt said with another sigh.

"Who said anything about adopting her" said Sheril. "I happened to find her trying to steal food from the mansion."

"So…you adopted a theif" Matt said, ignoring Sheril's comment about not adopting her.

"Again, I didn't adopt her" Sheril insisted. "Sure, but whatever, I don't feel like arguing a moot point."

"Good, be kind to her she's a good servant." Road snickered at Sheril's comment. "What is so funny Road?"

"Oh nothing, Matt already met Alice, after he shoved her to the ground while she was bringing you tea" said Road. She laughed to herself until Matt hit her on top of her head.

"Stop lying you little brat" Matt said, half kidding about the brat comment.

"Owww" Road complained as she rubbed her head, getting hit by Matt's left hand always hurts. "You didn't have to hit so hard."

"But then you wouldn't have learned your lesson" Matt said with a grin. Nobody said anything for a moment before Sheril broke the silence."Well if there's nothing more to be said I suggest we head to the dining hall. Dinner should be ready any minute now."

"Excellent idea" agreed Tyki. "You two can argue at the dinner table." Both Matt and Road glared at Tyki.

"We are not arguing" both said in unison.

"Alright, alright" Tyki said in defeat. "Let's just get going."

"Maybe when we get to the dining hall Lily and Jynx will have returned" Sheril added.

"What did you send them out to do" asked Matt, wondering where his two akuma could be. "Oh I just had them deliver some colleagues of mine" said Sheril. "They should be back any minute now seeing as their trip was only a few long."

"So I must have just missed them before arriving" Matt said to himself. "Alright then" Matt said to Sheril. "Let's get going."

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading! Please review! Chapter 126 coming soon!<strong>

**So this is a shorter chapter than I was originally intending. This little ark was only going to be 2 parts originally but as I wrote I realized that the second chapter (aka the one you just read) would've been too long for my liking. So I decided to make it a 3 part ark. This actually helps me a lot to get back into the swing of things. If you're wondering where all the action is, well don't worry there will be some action in upcoming chapters as veteran readers know I don't like to stay too long away from action oriented chapters. So I hope you enjoyed the chapter, the next one should be coming out relatively soon. Until next time!**


	126. Family Reunion part 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own DGM, just the OC's**

The walk to the dining hall was surprisingly long for Matt. However it couldn't be any longer than wandering the many halls of Mont Saint Michelle back in France. He thought about if being out for so long has messed with his sense of distance. There was no real reason for thinking this, but he had been thinking fairly irrationally ever since he woke up. And the fact that Majnun was quite made him even more curious about why he seemed so scatterbrained. As he thought he noticed that Sheril was talking to him.

"I'm sorry, what did you say" Matt asked Sheril after realizing he wasn't paying attention to what Sheril was saying.

"I was asking when you think you'll be able to start taking missions again" said Sheril.

"I'm all set to go" said Matt. "It would probably help to get back into the swing of things sooner rather than later."

"Are you sure" asked Road. "You seem to be spacing out a lot."

"If that's the case then why don't you rest here a few more days" said Sheril, worried that Matt may not be ready to return to the front lines. "Just to make sure you're alright.""I said I'm fine" Matt yelled angrily. Matt then stopped walking. He wasn't sure why he just got angry, in fact he wasn't actually angry at all. "I'm sorry, that was uncalled for."

"It's alright" said Sheril. "We're just making sure you don't go jumping head first into missions that you aren't ready for." Matt knew from the beginning that they were simply looking out for his well being.

"I know, I've just been distracted that's all" Matt explained.

"About what" asked Tyki.

"Nothing actually" said Matt. "My mind is actually quite quiet at the moment. Majnun hasn't said anything ever since I arrived at the mansion.""Does he talk often" asked Road. She knew that Majnun would talk to him, after all Matt would randomly start talking to himself so it was safe to assume that Majnun was talking to Matt at the time.

"Well, not really" said Matt. "Eight years ago he would only talk so often. However when I came to a few days ago he has been talking non stop. Now that he isn't talking" Matt trailed off for a moment. "It just seems odd that's all. It's no problem. I'll get used to it again." Matt gave a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it. I'm fine. Believe me I'm ready to go out on missions again.""Well we'll discuss that tomorrow" said Sheril who was relieved to hear what Matt had to say. "As for now we shall go eat."

* * *

><p>The three made it to the dining hall. It was very large, capable many people if there wasn't a large table in the middle of it.<p>

"A bit large for a family of 6" Matt pointed out as they entered.

"Yes well now that I'm back in Portugal I need to have a large dining hall for when guests attend" Sheril explained.

"Don't tell me we're going to have those awful political parties again" Matt complained."Comes with the job of being Prime Minister" said Sheril.

"Don't complain" said Road."Quiet you" Matt said a bit sternly. "You only like them because of the attention you get." Road stuck her tongue out at Matt as she sat down at the table. Dinner was served but Matt had only a small amount of food. The travel he had done in the last few days had spoiled his appetite a bit. Regardless though he slowly ate his food as the rest of his family told stories from the last few days.

Dinner seemed to drag on forever to Matt he had finished his food and was now just listening to everyone talk about current events. They mainly spoke about Sheril's upcoming election, which was apparently going well for him. The only thing that caught Matt's attention was the talks about a large amount of violent riots going on in the middle east.

"So what's that about" Matt asked, referring to the conflicts.

"Oh the Earl has stirred up some small conflicts in those countries to create more akuma" said Sheril. Just then the sound of the door opened behind Matt who didn't bother looking.

"And how is that going him" asked Matt as he heard the door close.

"Better than expected" said Sheril. "According to the Earl it wasn't too difficult to get a few akuma into political power over there and have them stir up trouble."

"And how long has that been going on?"

"Only for a few months, he doesn't expect the riots to continue much longer. But the job will be done by then" said Sheril. Just then Matt notice something in the bottom corner of his right eye. He looked down to see a small girl with surprisingly long blonde hair. Her large green eyes stared at Matt as he looked down at her. She seemed a bit confused. The two stared at each other for a brief moment before it clicked into Matt's head who he was staring at.

"Hello Lily" Matt said warmly, but Lily was still weary. Matt was about to say something else until Lily poked Matt in the face. "Hey, what are you doing that for" he asked.

"You can't be the real Daddy" said Lily as she continued to poke him. Matt had to then remind himself that she called him that.

"And why is that" Matt asked, not really bothered by the poking.

"He's sleeping at our old home" Lily said innocently.

"Is that so? Well don't you think he would wake up eventually" Matt asked, going along with this. Lily then stopped poking him.

"Maybe…" Lily trailed off as if thinking about what Matt said. "But he would've called or something.""Unless he wanted to make it a surprise" Matt said with a grin. Lily stood there for a moment more, thinking it over, until she decided to believe Matt. A wide smile came over her face.

"Daddy" Lily nearly yelled as she jumped up to hug him. The jump caught Matt off guard as he leaned back causing his chair to tip over. Matt hit the ground with a thud but there sitting on top of him, clinging to him the way he always remembered was Lily. He pat her on the head, ignoring the laughing coming from the other Noah.

"Must you be so rough" Matt asked nicely.

"Sorry" said Lily.

"Don't worry about it, it's fine" said Matt. He then looked up to see another familiar face staring down at him. There, standing above him was his second akuma, Jynx. Her hair had grown longer since 8 years ago, it now went down the entire length of her back. Her purple eyes remained the same though.

"Hey Jynx" Matt said with a smile. He would get up to properly greet her but Lily wasn't budging.

"Hello master" said Jynx in a surprisingly plain tone, though Matt could hear the happiness and excitement behind that tone. She did however give a warm smile. Matt laid on the ground for a minute more before he decided it was time to get up. Matt lifted Lily up and had Jynx grab her so he could get up. "Thank you Jynx" Matt said with a smile.

"Aww this is boring now" Road complained.

"What are you getting at" asked Matt as Lily went back to clinging to Matt after Jinx put her down.

"I was certain Jynx was going to kiss you" Road said with an upset look.

"Yes well…" said Matt who really wasn't all that surprised by this. "To be honest I was a bit surprised myself." He then looked over at Jynx. "Why haven't you?"

"Well, you usually don't like it when I do" said Jynx, and I didn't want to embarrass you." Matt was a bit surprised by her answer. These reasons never stopped her before from doing it.

"Well first off…I would be lying if I said I didn't like it" said Matt who was a but shocked that he was saying this.

"Does that mean I can-" Jynx was about to ask.

"No" Matt immediately cut her off from finishing her question. Jynx looked mildly upset but that usually happened when this happened.

"You're no fun at all" said Road. "You should let her.""Don't encourage her" said Matt. "Plus, the last thing I need the day I've returned home is to hear you poking fun at me about her kissing me.""Well that sounds hopeful for the future" Road said with an evil grin.

"I said don't-" Matt cut himself off and sighed. "Never mind. I'm too tired to deal with that today.""It's not that late" Sheril pointed out. "Has traveling worn you out?"

"A bit. So I think I'll call it a day" said Matt.

"Very well we shall see you tomorrow" said Sheril. Matt nodded then left the dining hall with Lily and Jynx not far behind.

* * *

><p>Back in his room Matt got ready for bed. It didn't take him long before he was laying in his new bed. Lily crawled up onto the bed and curled up next to Matt. It didn't take long before she was fast asleep. Jynx was sitting in a chair next to the bed. She looked ready for bed as well.<p>

"It's weird. If you looked at how things are right now in the room I would almost think that no time had passed at all" said Matt.

"It does seem very nostalgic" said Jynx.

"Well I suppose it would be for you" Matt said with a smile. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened all those years ago. If I had known what was going to happen…" Matt trailed off.

"It's alright master" said Jynx. "Nobody could have predicted that.""True, but if I did then at least I would've said something to you two before I left.""Like what" asked Jynx.

"Don't know" said Matt. "Looking at you two now I realize that things seemed to work out well for you two. Though I guess I would have said how important you two are to me.""We are?"

"Yes, it's hard to explain" said Matt. "Perhaps it's because I created you two myself or maybe it's because you act different from the other akuma. But whatever the reason I don't want to see anything bad happen to either of you.""That…means a lot" said Jynx.

"Yes, well nearly dying certainly opens your eyes a bit.""Are you sure you're alright" asked Jynx.

"As well as I'll ever be but that's a conversation for another day. Do me a favor and turn off the lights?"

"Of course master" said Jynx as she stood up. A moment later the lights were out and everyone fell asleep in the bed. Matt knew though that this might be the last night of peace he will have for a long time.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 127 coming soon!**

**And so Matt's first day came to a close, and so does the mini arc. Starting next chapter will be a new arc and don't worry Matt will be back on missions soon! I must apologize for this chapter coming out later than I had hoped. I accidentally deleted the chapter so I had to rewrite it. Also, in regards to chapter 126, the chapter has been edited a bit to fix some typos that were made. As for the future releasing of chapters. I will try to upload as often as I can but expect about 1 chapter a week. Anyways that's it for now. Until next time!**


	127. First Mission Back

**Disclaimer: I do not own DGM, just the OC's **

Matt woke up the next morning with sunbeams shining through the window. The light made his eyes hurt as they were adjusting. He went to sit up when he realized that both Lily and Jynx managed to wrap themselves around him. He sighed a little but not out of annoyance but out of predictability. He was about to wake them up when a knock came to his door.

"Come in" said Matt as he sat there. The door opened and Alice walked into the room.

"I'm sorry to disturb you this early" said Alice as she entered the room. "However Master Sheril…" Alice trailed off when she looked at Matt. Her face went completely red as she saw the two girls practically hanging off him. "I-I'm so sorry" Alice said in embarrassment. "I'll come back later."

"It's fine" Matt said calmly. "They have a tendency of doing that over night."

"I…see" said Alice not really comprehending the scene. She knew that the two were akuma however she had never seen them act like that. "So…are you close with them?"

"You could say that" said Matt with a smile. "Though it's a bit more complicated than that.""Is it because they're akuma" Alice asked. Matt was a bit taken aback by this.

"So you are aware of what they are" said Matt.

"Yes, Master Sheril explained everything when I came to live here. I also know that you are a Noah, just like him."

"That is correct" said Matt. "So is that all you know?"

"Apart from the fact that those two are supposed to be unique akuma then yes."

"Well then I guess you should know that I was the one who created these two" said Matt, taking quite a lot of pride in that as he said it.

"Wow…I guess I understand what you mean by complicated now" Alice said, surprised. Matt simply laughed a little.

"Yep, you pretty much got the idea." Matt then pulled his arms free and woke the sleeping akuma.

"What time is it" asked Jynx as she yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"Early, I think" said Matt. He then looked at Alice. "What is it that you came here for again?"

"Oh right" Alice said, remembering why she was here. "Master Sheril requests your audience immediately."

"No need to sound so formal" Matt said as he got out of the bed. "Not in front of me at least."

"I will remember that next time" said Alice. "I will wait for you downstairs." Alice then left the room, closing the door behind her.

"What could Sheril want at this hour" asked Jynx.

"I think you and I both know the answer to that" said Matt as he went to get dressed. "I guess my time off is over."

"But you only just got back" Jynx protested, upset by the thought of Matt leaving so soon.

"True, but my guess is the Earl knows I'm back now so he'll want me back on the front lines" said Matt as he picked through his clothes in the closet.

After a few minutes Matt walked out of the closet. Matt decided to wear black pants with a short sleeved black shirt. He also grabbed a long black trench coat, similar to the ones he used to wear, though these coats seemed to have stronger material. Matt laughed to himself, Sheril was clearly tired of them getting ruined each mission. Matt was about to leave the room when Lily, who was now fully awake stopped him.

"Don't go" said Lily.

"Don't worry" said Matt in a comforting voice. "I'll be fine."

"You said that last time" Lily looked like she was ready to cry. Matt patted her on the head.

"Yes, that's true. However, we both know that I have to do this. But I promise you that I will do everything in my power to return in one piece."

"You promise" sniffed Lily.

"Of course I do" Matt said with a smile. "Now, go get yourself ready for the day and I'll see you soon." Lily nodded and went back to the bed. Matt opened the door and looked back to Jynx who smiled. Matt nodded and left the room.

* * *

><p>Downstairs Matt saw Alice sitting on one of the couches. She stood up immediately when she saw him. "You look like you're about to head to war" she pointed out.<p>

"Well you would be right" said Matt. "I've been on the sideline far too long now."

"You think that Master Sheril is going to ask you to go out and fight?

"I don't think, I know" said Matt.

"Then I will take you to him" said Alice and she escorted Matt to Sheril's office.

Once inside Sheril, who was sitting behind his desk looked up. He saw what Matt was wearing. "Well I see you had a fairly good idea about why I called you here" said Sheril.

"Indeed, why else would you bug me this early" Matt lightly teased.

"Well I could be looking to spend some quality time with my son whom I haven't seen in 8 years."

"Mhm" said Matt not buying into it. "Sadly I don't believe you."

"You hurt me" said Sheril. "However, you're right that's not why I had Alice retrieve you."

"Gee I'm so surprised" Matt said sarcastically.

"Your return was unexpected, and because of that I had to notify the Earl" said Sheril. "I tried to convince him that you needed more time to get adjusted again to being awake but he insisted that I send you on a mission."

"The war going that badly?"

"Sort of, but that's a discussion for another time, though I'm sure you've already been told about the current status of the war" said Sheril.

"So what's the mission" asked Matt.

"The Black Order has been applying a lot of pressure on us recently, they've been rapidly expanding across the globe setting up more and more bases of operation as they go. One of those bases is being built as we speak here in Portugal."

"Is that so? Where?"

"Pico Island" said Sheril.

"Pico Island? You mean that little volcanic island in the middle of the ocean? That seems a bit far a way don't you think?"

"That's true it is a good distance from the mainland but still it's an isolated island and a good staging ground for any Order attacks on Portugal."

"Can you even call and island that far out part of Portugal" Matt said to himself out loud, ignoring Sheril.

"Yes, you can. Now pay attention" said Sheril in a serious voice.

"Right sorry" said Matt.

"Now look, the Order is trying to build a base inside the volcanic mountain there. It's been dormant for a while now but it can supply them with a near infinite supply of energy. Should they succeed in creating a base, which at this point seems very likely we won't be able to get at the base without bringing down the entire volcano, which from a political standpoint, would be very annoying to deal with. So I need you to go and destroy their operation and drive them from the island."

"Doesn't sound too hard" Matt said confidently. "Though like you said, it would be easier if I could just bring down the mountain."

"Yes well I don't want to clean up the mess. After all it is inhabited" Sheril pointed out. "Speaking of inhabitance, there's a very good chance that the Order will be holed up in the town of Madalena so be on the lookout. The island may be part of Portugal but my guess is with the current occupation you will not find a warm welcome there."

"I'm sure I'll figure out a way to deal with it" said Matt with a grin on his face.

"No, you cannot destroy the entire city."

"Oh you're no fun" said Matt.

"Well this is my country we're dealing with and I need to stay in the people's favor so I can keep getting reelected. I don't want to deal with the fallout of nearly 7,000 people getting killed in a single day."

"Duly noted" said Matt. "I'll try to keep the civilian casualties to a minimum." Sheril sighed."Well I suppose that will have to do" said Sheril. "Maybe I should've sent Road or Tyki…" he said to himself.

"Right well I guess I will be off then" said Matt. "Will I be traveling through an ark gate?"

"Yes you will. It will take you to an town on an island across from Pico called Horta. You'll have to charter a boat to get the Pico from there."

"Very well. I shall return when the job is done" said Matt and he left the room.

* * *

><p>Matt reached the foyer of the mansion when Road called out to him.<p>

"Where do you think you're going" Road called out as she caught up to Matt.

"Going out on a mission" said Matt.

"Duh" said Road. "I mean where do you think you're going without me?"

"I wasn't aware you were joining me" said Matt, who was a bit surprised and annoyed that he wasn't informed of this, though he should've known better.

"Right and let you go out on your own after 8 years of laying in a bed. You might be strong but you're going to need backup until you get back to your old shape."

"Ouch, not pulling any punches there" said Matt.

"Nope" said Road. "So I'm joining you on your little mission to give you some support."

"Very well" Matt sighed. "Well on the bright side at least you can use your door to get us to the island."

"That's right, so where are we heading?"

"Wait, you're joining me without even knowing where I'm going" Matt asked in disbelief.

"Unimportant details, so where am I taking us?"

"A town called Horta" said Matt. We'll take a boat the Pico Island from there."

"Can't we just go directly there?"

"Sheril suggested against it" said Matt. "The Order is dug in deep there."

"Fine, have it your way, we'll do it the boring way" Road complained as she summoned her door. The two then walked through it.

* * *

><p>Matt and Road found themselves outside on an island, however there was no town.<p>

"Road where did you put us" asked Matt as he looked around. As he did he noticed the giant mountain a fair distance away, however they were on the same island. "Road…" Matt sounded annoyed now.

"What" Road asked with an innocent look on her face.

"We're on Pico Island aren't we" Matt asked, it was cleared he was angry.

"Yep."

"Even though I specifically said to put us in a town on the island nearby."

"Yep."

"So you completely ignored me."

"Mhm."

Matt sighed in frustration. "I should've known you would do this."

"To be honest I'm surprised you didn't know" said Road.

"Of course. Well I hope the Order doesn't know we're here."

"I doubt they know we're here" said Road. "I made sure we were a fair distance from the mountain."

"The entire island is under their control" Matt pointed out, nearly yelling. And if on cue a small patrol of about 5 finders came over a hill and spotted them. "See what I mean!"

"Oh….so that's why you said to go to the other island" said Road. Matt was about to say something but decided it was pointless to argue seeing as she knew exactly what she was doing. The finders were getting closer when Matt decided to speak.

"So…seeing as you got us into this mess why don't you tell me the plan of attack" said Matt.

"Consider them a warm up. Do whatever you want" Road said with an evil grin. Matt couldn't help but laugh. The laugh quickly turned evil as Matt's skin began to change from white to gray, with the stigmatas forming on his forehead.

"Well I suppose I should enjoy myself then" said Matt as the ground began to shake.

**Thanks for reading! Please review! Chapter 128 coming soon! So…1 chapter a week…yeah…sorry about that. Anyways, I'm back and only after a short hiatus this time! I do apologize for that. I didn't know where I wanted to end the chapter but I think this will allow me to get right into the action next chapter which I am very much looking forward to writing. So expect that chapter to be ready as soon as possible.**

**ALSO! An important little extra note. I've decided to do a little something to say "thank you" to all my faithful readers. I have received many suggestions over the times and I've tried to accommodate as many as possible so I've decided to do something special. I am willing to write "special" custom chapters for my fans. They would be non canon of course but it's a good way to see a "what if" moment that you haven't seen yet. All you have to do is PM me with what you want and I'll write it and send it to you (or publish it on the site for all to read). I don't have any real restrictions about what I will write though details can be discussed in Pms. I'll take requests on a first come first serve basis and will keep it open until the next chapter is released. Anyways that's all I have to say, and once again thank you! Until next time!**


	128. First Mission Back pt 2

**I do not own DGM, just the OC's**

The 5 Finders ran over the ridge on their usual patrol of the island when they noticed two figures standing near the bottom of the hill.

"Hey, are those two some of ours" asked one of the Finders who pointed at the two figures in the distance.

"Doesn't look like it" said another. "Perhaps it's some of the locals.""But the locals don't really come out towards the volcano any more ever since we showed up" the first finder pointed out.

"He has a point" said another Finder who appeared to be in charge. "Either way we need to check it out." The others nodded and began to approach the two figures. As they approached the ground began to shake violently.

"What's going on" asked the first Finder.

"It must be the volcano acting up again" said the third Finder.

"I wonder if the science division will be able to set up in there with the volcano being active" the second Finder asked the group.

"The Order knew the volcano was active when they decided to set up shop here, I'm sure the science division can handle themselves" the fourth Finder reassured.

"Yeah you're right" said the second Finder. Just then a sharp rock shot out of the ground and pierced through the second Finder's heart. The finder look in shock as he fell to the ground dead.

"What the hell" the first finder yelled.

"Watch out" yelled the lead finder. "They must be akuma!" Just as he said that one of the figures disappeared and reappeared right in front of him.

"Not quite" said Matt with a smug grin. A look of horror came over the Finder's face.

"But you're supposed to be-" the finder wasn't able to finish his sentence as Matt stabbed the finder in the chest. The remaining three finders didn't have any time to react before they were shot up by Road's candles. Matt looked over the dead finder he had just killed.

"Well that was easy" said Matt as he stretched his arms a little. "A good enough warm-up I suppose.""Well someone's confident for their first mission in 8 years" Road chime in.

"No, I was simply pointing out how easy it is to kill these guys" said Matt. "I mean seriously, what's the point of even having them, they are literally cannon fodder.""What do you think akuma are for us" said Road.

"Good point" said Matt. "But at least akuma are tougher to take down." Matt looked around to see that no one else was around. "Well I suppose we should get going before they notice their dead finders.""I agree" said Road and the two began to run towards the mountain.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile at the construction sight of the new Black Order base, Allen Walker and Kanda was talking to an Order scientist when the ground began to rumble.<p>

"Was that the volcano" Allen asked.

"I believe so" said one of the scientists. "Though I can't be sure until we check the readings inside.

I still don't think we need this many people hear guarding the construction" Kanda complained. "I could be doing more productive things with my time."

"Oh stop complaining" said Allen. "This base is important to the future of the Order."

"He's right" the scientist added. "The volcano will provide nearly unlimited energy for our operations, and will become the head branch for the science division once it is finished."

"Either way let's head back in and rest up, it's been a long day" said Allen. As the three began to head towards the base's entrance the ground shook again. "There it is again" Allen pointed out.

"I'm sure it's nothing" said the scientist. Just then Kanda looked up.

"Watch out" Kanda yelled as he dived and pushed Allen and the scientist out of the way as a giant boulder came crashing down behind them.

"Was that from the volcano" Allen asked as he activated his innocence.

"No, it couldn't have" said the scientist as he slowly stood up. "If it was it would be burning hot."

"But if it didn't come from the volcano then where" Allen asked as he looked towards the volcano. There on the slope of the volcano stood two figures. Suddenly the ground around them began to shake again. This time everyone jumped to stable ground as the ground that was shaking erupted with stone spikes.

"What the, those formations" said Kanda.

"No, it couldn't be" Allen said as he looked back at the two figures on the volcano. One of them then launched into the sky heading straight towards. Once again everyone was forced to jump out of the way as the figured slammed into the ground between the three of them. The ground around the figure formed a shockwave that tossed the two exorcists and scientist into the air for a moment before hitting the ground hard. Allen was the first to come to his senses. As he looked at the newly formed mini crater there was a single person standing in the middle. As the dust began to settle Allen's worst fear came true. There standing right in front of him was Matt Kamelot, the Noah that supposedly died 8 long years ago.

"But, that's impossible" said Allen in shock. "You died…" Matt looked at Allen, his golden eyes seemed to glow in contrast to his surroundings.

"I've been getting that a lot recently" said Matt as he lunged at Allen. Allen didn't have enough time to react for Matt punched him in the gut, lifting him off the ground, knocking the wind out of Allen.

"Allen, you alright" Kanda asked as he finally recovered. However, as he said that Matt grabbed Allen, while he was still in the air from Matt's punch. He turned around and threw Allen into Kanda, knocking both to the ground. However at this point Kanda regained his senses and recovered quickly enough to activate his innocence and managed to block Matt follow up attack which was a thrust of his, now stone sword arm.

"So, you're still alive" Kanda said in annoyance.

"Aw you missed me" said Matt as he kicked Kanda into the ground. Just as Matt was about to kick Kanda again when he was directly hit by Allen's crown edge attack, sending him crashing into the ground several yards away.

"Are you alright" Allen asked Kanda who was quick to get up.

"I'm fine" Kanda stated stubbornly. "Even though he's been gone for so long he seems far stronger than before."

"Yeah so I've noticed." Just then Lenalee rushed out of the base's main entrance.

"Guys what's going on out here" Lenalee asked as she approached the two exorcists. "The sensors inside are picking up Noah activity…" Lenalee's thought trailed off when she saw Matt standing up. "Wait, what's going on here" Lenalee asked confused. "He's not supposed to be here."

"So the sensors are only now picking up Noah activity" Kanda asked, irritated by the news.

"Sorry, there are still some bugs in the system. But that's not the point, what is he doing here? Wasn't he confirmed killed years ago" Lenalee asked pointing towards Matt.

"There's no time to explain Lenalee" Allen explained. "To be honest we're still trying to comprehend it as well."

"But…" Lenalee seemed lost in thought.

"Focus Lenalee" Kanda shouted. "He's stronger than before now is not the time to get lost in your own thoughts!" Lenalee shook her head.

"Right, sorry about that" Lenalee apologized. "But we need to be careful, the sensors picked up two signatures in the area."

"If he's one signal then where's the other" Allen asked when suddenly he collapsed to the ground, eyes wide open but seemingly lifeless.

"Allen" Lenalee yelled out as she hurried over to Allen. Just then there as a familiar laugh. She looked over and saw Road. "You…"

"I think I'll have some fun with Allen" Road said with a sadistic grin. "In the meantime why don't you take care of the other two" Road yelled out to Matt.

"You truly have a sick fascination with him" Matt muttered to himself right before he charged towards Kanda and Lenalee.

Lenalee was the first to attack Matt, rushing towards him with great speed. In an instant she was in front of Matt and kicking him in the shoulder. Matt however managed to block a bit of the attack with his arms. He then managed to grab he leg and lift her over his body and throwing her into the ground. Kanda wasn't far behind as he lunged at him with his sword. Matt tried to dodge but the attack took him at a bit of a surprise so the sword thrust managed to cut his right arm a bit. Matt then immediately countered by tripping Kanda and smashing his face into the ground with his left hand.

Matt looked at the cut on his arm, it was deeper than he thought. However, even though he was used to seeing his wounds heal fast he was shocked to see it healing as fast as it was. In a just a few seconds the wound was completely gone."What the…" Matt said to himself. He looked at the gem imbedded into his right wrist which was implanted after his only mission with the Noah of Death. "Could that have caused the rapid healing?" Matt didn't have time to think before he was kicking hard in the head by Lenalee, he had been so focused on his arm that he completely forgot about the fight. Matt slammed into the ground hard. He rolled out of the way of a follow up attack from Lenalee but was impaled in his side by Kanda's Mugen. Matt, now in pain slammed his arm into the ground and a large slab of rock shot out of the ground, hitting Kanda square in the gut sending him flying back a fair distance. Matt managed to pull Mugen out of him just as Lenalee managed to land a hard kick which sent him sailing towards Road.

Matt crashed right into Road who wasn't paying attention to his fight and the two tumbled to the ground. As soon as Road's concentration was broke Allen snapped out of his trance and slowly stood back up.

"Hey watch where you're falling" Road gripped as she pushed Matt off her. She then looked and saw that she had some of Matt's blood stained onto her shirt. "Oh great, it's going to take weeks to get this washed out."

"Oh quit complaining" Matt said as he stood up. "It's not like you have a thousand of the exact same shirt."

"That's not the point" Road pouted a little. "But speaking of your blood, that wound looks bad, do you think we should pull back for now?"

"No, I'm fine for now" said Matt as he looked at his wound. "But I think we should finish this quickly."

"So what do you suggest?"

"How long do you think it would take you to set that base to self destruct?"

"A few minutes" said Road. "Can you hold for that long?"

"Yeah…probably….I think…." Matt trailed off.

"What a vote of confidence you are."

"Don't worry I'll be fine."

"Suit yourself. Just don't die again on us. We can't afford that to happen again."

"Of course" said Matt and Road ran off towards the mountain base. Meanwhile, Allen had recovered and grouped up with Lenalee and Kanda.

"Road's heading towards the base" Kanda yelled out. "We need to stop her now!"

"On it" said Lenalee and she sprinted off towards Road.

"You and I will take care of the Noah of Madness" said Allen. Kanda nodded and the two charged towards Matt.

Just as Lenalee was about to reach Road a stone hand reached out of the ground grabbing her leg, sending her crashing into the ground at the very moment. Lenalee looked back at what grabbed her and saw Matt standing behind her.

"Matt!" Lenalee quickly looked over and saw Matt also fighting with Kanda and Allen. "A clone?"

"Not quite" said Matt. "Well at least I'm not. What you're friends are fighting though is a clone." Lenalee looked back at Allen and Kanda to see several more clones burst from the ground and began overwhelming the two of them.

"Stop this Matt" Lenalee demanded.

"And why exactly should I" Matt asked with a grin. "It's not like anything's changed."

"I don't want to have to kill you after all these years" Lenalee was serious in her tone when she said this.

"You couldn't kill me 8 years ago, you won't be able to now" said Matt as a streak of stone came shooting out of the ground and hitting Lenalee sending her tumbling. Lenalee was quick to recover as she stood back up and shot towards Matt. Her kick made contact with Matt but thanks to the fact that he blocked with his left arm he was only pushed back a little. Lenalee then followed up with a flurry of kicks, each one faster and stronger than the last. Matt managed to block several of the first kicks but quickly was overwhelmed by the rapid kicks. Just as Lenalee was about to land a heavy blow though Matt managed to break her momentum with slabs of rock.

The fight then began to follow a similar pattern of Lenalee landing several kicks before Matt stopped her. It didn't take long for her to realize that Matt was merely stalling her. Over with Kanda and Allen there was a similar story. Stone clones of Matt were constantly coming out of the ground whenever the two exorcists began getting an advantage. Lenalee then came to the conclusion that Matt was directly controlling the clones of himself while he was fighting her. In the end he was splitting his focus on two fronts hindering his ability to fight well on either.

After a few long minutes the sounds of explosions were going off from within the mountain. As the explosions began to subside the ground began to shake violently and soon after the mountain, which was an active volcano erupted violently sending stone and lave spewing into the air. This stopped all fighting as giant boulders came crashing down around them as well as the lava. It was during this moment of distraction that Lenalee found the opening on Matt she was looking for. One strong kick into Matt's gut and he was on the ground. Lenalee leapt high into the air for a meteor strike attack, one of her finishing moves. Matt managed to collect himself just enough to notice the attack. At the very last moment Matt managed to dodge the attack. The impact left a large crater and the force of the attack sent Matt tumbling.

Matt quickly got to his feet right as Lenalee was following up her attack. Matt went to punch with his left hand and in that moment the fight was over.

The next thing Matt knew was his left arm piercing Lenalee's right shoulder, only his arm didn't look like his arm. In fact it looked more like his right arm when it was a stone sword, only pitch black. Matt pulled his arm of Lenalee's shoulder as she collapsed to the ground. Matt's arm then suddenly and involuntarily changed back to normal only his fingers looked more like finger length claws then actual fingers. Lenalee then let out a shriek of pain just as Matt's own arm erupted into it's own crippling pain as he fell to his knees. Matt saw Allen and Kanda rushing towards him, innocence active when he felt someone grab him by the shoulders and pull him through a door which closed just as the two exorcists reached him.

**Thanks for reading! Please review. Chapter 129 coming soon!So yeah, once again I take forever to write a new chapter…sorry about that. I don't have much time anymore to work on new chapters but rest assured that I'm not done and will continue to publish chapters as often as I can. Also, I do appreciate everyone who kept in touch with me either through reviews or the private messages, it certainly helped me keep motivated to write! Anyways that's all I have to say here. Until next time!**


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